The  HoMfi 


OF  THE 


RE^IDENT^ 


C«-^ 


xi'«y^-ix^xi:i'i^: 


LINCOLN  ROOM 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


MEMORIAL 

the  Class  of  1901 


founded  by 

■;^.^i'.'. 

HARLAN  HOYT  HORNER 

■.'i  'j 

and 

^Ufe  "-;:": 

HENRIETTA  CALHOUN  HORNER 

mt 

;'tr;- 


V  1      .  >    '  .     1 


1^ 


^^^^ 


<o 


iJi^SfcJi^ 


THE 


Ladies  of  tiii-  Whitb  House  : 

08, 

In  thh  Homh  of  thu  Presidents. 


Being  a  Complete  History  of  the  Social  and  Domestic  Lives  of  the 
Presidents  from  Washington  to  the  Present  Time. 


BY 

LAURA  C  HOLLOWAY. 


tV/T//  NUMEROUS   ENGRA  WINGS   ON  STEEL  AND    tVOOD. 


IMII  ADF.I.PHIA: 

BRADLEY   <:i  COMPANY, 

06  N\)krM  Fourth  Sirket. 
FOND-nU-LAC.  WIS.: 

G.    L.    BENJAMIN. 
1.SS2. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  yeur  1881,  by 

LAURA  C.  HOLLOWAY, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


PREFACE. 


The  T.adies  of  the  White  House  have  had  no  biographers.     The 

io  custom  of  the  Republic,  which  relegates  back  to  private  life   those 

-^  who  have  served  it,  has  made  it  difficult  to  gather  much  of  stirring 

'^  interest  concerning  the  women  who  have  made  the  social  history  of 

the  different  administrations.     From  privacy  they  came,  to  privacy 

TV  they  were  returned,  and  the  world  took  little  cognizance  of  them 

y^^   beyond  noting  the  entertainments  they  gave,  and  th6  success  that  at- 

■^    tended  their  dinners  and  receptions. 

In  the  historical  works  of  the  age — even  in  the  biographies  of  the 
Presidents  themselves — not  much  has  been  said  of  women,  who,  for 
the  most  part,  were  powerful  adjuncts  to  their  popularity,  and  exerted 
great  influence  over  their  lives.  The  most  that  has  been  written  of 
them  heretofore  were  descriptions  in  the  daily  papers  of  the  appear- 
ance of  the  lady  of  the  White  House  on  some  public  occasion,  and 
with  this  the  world  has  been  content  until  now.  We  have  had  a 
hundred  years  of  domestic  honor  in  the  White  House — a  hundred 
years  which  has  added  much  to  the  glory  of  the  country  abroad,  and 
it  is  but  fitting  that  women,  who  have  held  the  highest  social  and 
semi-official  position  in  the  nation,  should  be  made  historic  subjects. 
No  better  time  than  the  present  could  be  found  for  filling  this  serious 
gap  in  general  American  history.  The  moral  influence  that  has  been 
exerted  by  the  untarnished  reputations  and  high  social  qualities  of  the 
women  who  have  successively  filled  the  position  of  Hostess  of  the 
Presidents'  House,  cannot  be  estimated.  Without  the  effective  and 
intelligent  aid  they  rendered,  no  administration  would  have  been 
satisfactory;  and  though  the  political  historian  may  ignore  such  ser- 
vice, the  right-thinking,  honorable  men  or  women  of  this  country 
have  a  higher  appreciation  of  the  services  rendered  by  these  ladies, 
who  were  the  power  behind  the  throne,  equal  in  social  influence  to 
the  throne  itself,  and  a  historical  work  bearing  upon  their  lives  is  a 
valuable  contribution  to  the  nation's  official  history. 

0) 


4  PREFACE. 

Such  a  one  is  now  offered  to  the  people  of  this  country.  It  is  a 
complete  work,  comprising  a  biographical  sketch  of  every  President's 
wife  and  hostess  of  the  Executive  Mansion  from  Mrs.  Washington 
down  to  Mrs.  Garfield. 

The  information  contained  in  the  volume  has  never  been  compiled 
in  any  other  form,  and  there  are  many  historical  facts  of  a  most  in- 
teresting nature  for  the  first  time  presented  to  the  public.  The  book 
contains  the  portraits  of  the  wives  of  the  Presidents,  and  of  the 
ladies  who  presided  over  the  Mansion  during  the  administrations  of 
unmarried  Presidents.  At  a  time  when  the  women  of  this  country 
are  commanding  the  attention  of  the  civilized  world  by  reason  of 
their  higher  education,  superior  mental  attributes,  and  exalted  social 
status,  such  a  book  is  of  exceptional  value. 

The  mechanical  execution  of  the  work  will  commend  itself  to  all 
lovers  of  excellence  in  book-making.  Nothing  has  been  left  undone 
that  would  make  it  worthy  of  the  ladies  whose  records  it  contains. 
The  unusual  attractions  of  the  theme,  the  style  in  which  it  is  pub- 
lished, and  the  place  in  the  country's  history  which  such  a  book  fills, 
conspire  to  render  it  a  work  which  the  public  and  private  libraries  of 
this  country  cannot  afford  to  be  without ;  they  cannot  be  called  com- 
plete without  a  copy  of  the  "  Ladies  of  the  White  House." 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


THE   WHITE   HOUSE Z?^"-  ^'I't  pfg''- 

MARTHA  WASHINGTON  (  Vignette) face  page     39 


MARTHA   WASHINGTON 

ABIGAIL  ADAMS 

MARTHA    JEFFERSON 

DOROTHY    P.    MADISON 

LOUISA   CATHARINE   ADAMS 

RACHEL   JACKSON  

MRS.  MARTIN    VAN    BUREN 

ANGELICA    VAN    BURF.N 

LETITIA   CHRISTIAN    TYLER.... 

MRS.    JAMES    K.    POLK 

ABIGAIL   FILLMORE 

HARRIET    LANE 

MRS.    ABRAHAM    LINCOLN 

MRS.   ANDREW   JOHNSON 

MARTHA    P.\TTERSON 

MRS.   ULYSSES   S.    GRANT 

NELLIE   GRANT   SARTORIS 

LUCY   WEBB   HAYES 

LUCRETIA   RUDOLPH   GARFIELD. 
ELIZA    BALLOU    GARFIELD 


MOUNT   VERNON {wood  CUt)  .  . 

MONTICELLO " 

MONTPELIER " 

FIRST   RESIDENCE   OF   ANDREW   JACKSON " 

HERMITAGE ** 

WHEATLAND "  ... 

HOME   OF   ABRAHAM   LINCOLN  AT  SPRINGFIELD.  " 

MENTOR "  .. 


«   « 

43 

«    « 

87 

"    " 

126 

"    " 

171 

«   if 

238 

<i    « 

272 

"     " 

333 

(1    <( 

339 

"     " 

366 

«    (1 

400 

«    « 

457 

«    « 

498 

<l    « 

526 

«    <f 

546 

" 

573 

"     " 

603 

«    <l 

612 

»    » 

628 

"    •• 

665 

«    11 

694 

«    <l 

55 

"     « 

147 

«    <l 

206 

«    « 

282 

«   « 

287 

t<    « 

506 

tl   « 

530 

<f   <( 

680 

(5) 


CONTENTS. 


MARTHA  AVASHINGTON. 

Personal  appearance  of  Mrs.  Custis — Introduced  to  Colonel  Washington — Tr»- 
ditions  relating  to  their  first  interview — The  body-servant's  long  wait  for 
his  master's  appearance — His  orders  to  put  up  the  horses  for  the  night — 
The  wooing  of  the  soldier  lover — Returns  from  the  seat  of  government  to 
offer  himself — Engngement — Marriage — The  wedding  at  the  "  White  House  " 
— The  Virginia  home  of  the  bride — A  most  joyous  and  happy  event — The 
girlhood  of  Martha  Dandridge — The  belle  of  Williami.burg — Her  first 
marriage — Death  of  her  eldest  son — Colonel  Cnstis — His  fine  character 
and  romantic  nature — Happy  married  life  with  him — Left  with  two  children 
— She  manages  her  estate  after  her  husband's  death — Residence  near  her 
father's  home — Twenty-six  years  old  when  she  becomes  Mrs.  Washington 
— Had  never  known  care  or  poverty — Her  high  social  position — Removal  to 
Mount  Vernon — Again  the  mistress  of  a  wealthy  planter's  home — Often 
with  Washington  in  Williamsburg  while  he  was  a  member  of  the  Legisla- 
ture— Her  life  a  happy  one — Washington's  great  consideration  for  her— 
Only  letter  preserved  that  was  written  by  him  to  her — Mrs.  Washington  before 
her  death  destroyed  all  her  letters— This  one  overlooked — His  assurance  that 
he  is  unwilling  to  part  with  her  and  their  children,  at  the  time  that  he  is 
made  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Continental  Army— His  only  unhappiness 
due  to  her  loneliness — Urges  her  to  be  content,  and  not  complain  of  what 
he  could  not  avoid— Makes  his  will  in  her  favor,  and  hopes  that  his  "  dear 
Patsy  "  is  pleased  with  its  provisions — Her  visits  to  him — Travels  in  her 
private  carriage  to  his  head-quarters  each  year — The  servants  wish  his  re- 
turn home — Washington  anxious  about  her,  and  after  her  arrival  sent  letters 
of  thanks  to  all  who  had  been  attentive  to  her — The  officers  glad  to  see  her— 
Once  insulted  in  Philadelphia  througli  party  bitterness — Sensitive  to  her  hus- 
band's fair  fame — Mrs.  Washington  not  fond  of  dre.ss — The  spinning-wheels 
and  looms  in  her  house — Washington's  inaugural  suit  the  handiwork  of  his 
household — She  wears  "  a  simple  russet  gown  and  white  handkerchief  about 
her  neck"  to  a  ball  given  in  her  honor — Two  of  her  dresses  woven  from  the 
ravelings  of  brown  silk  stockings  and  old  crimson  chair-covers — Washington's 
return  to  Mount  Vernon — called  again  from  his  retirement — Mrs.  \Yashington's 
crowning  glory — Some  other  attributes — Her  life  an  interesting  one,  veiwed 
historically — Mrs.  Washington  not  much  of  a  reader — A  good  daughter  and 
mother,  but  not  a  notable  housekeeper — Her  husband  the  manager  of  the  estab- 
lishment— The  children  governed  by  him — A  source  of  regret  that  he  had  no 

(7) 


8  CONTENTS. 

sons  and  daughters — His  countrymen  glad  that  there  was  no  parental  tie  to  di- 
vert him  from  his  public  service — Death  of  Miss  Cuslis — John  Parke  Custis  with 
General  Washington — His  young  wife  and  children  at  Mount  Vernon — Mrs. 
Washington  at  Valley  Forge  during  the  winter  of  1777-78 — Death  of  her  son — 
General  Washington  adopts  her  two  grandchildren,  and  returns  to  Mount 
Vernon  with  the  mourners — Mrs.  Washington's  first  reception  as  wife  of  the 
Chief  Magistrate — Pleased  with  her  lofty  position — The  levees  held  at  the 
Republican  Court — The  residence  of  the  President  in  New  York — The 
etiquette  of  the  mansion — Mrs.  Washington's  views  on  the  subject  of  her 
elevation — A  letter  to  a  friend,  in  which  her  philosophy  is  shown — Removal 
of  seat  of  government  to  Philadelplna — Letter  of  the  Rev.  Ashbel  Green — Mrs. 
W^ashington  again  at  Mount  Vernon — The  President  rents  a  house  in  Market 
street  between  Fifth  and  Sixth,  and  furnishes  it  handsomely — Return  of  the 
President  and  Mr>.  Washington  from  Mount  Vernon — Congress  assembles — 
Mrs,  Washington's  drawing-rooms  held  on  Friday  evenings — Early  hours  for 
retiring — She  tells  her  company  that  her  husband  retired  at  "  ten"  and  she 
followed  very  soon  afterward — Stiffness  and  formality  of  the  drawing-rooms 
— How  Mrs.  Washington  received — No  handshaking  in  those  days — The 
grandchildren  of  Mrs.  Washington — Mrs.  Robert  Morris  receives  with 
Mrs.  Washington — The  Marchioness  d'Yuro — The  first  levee  in  Philadel- 
phia the  most  brilliant  occasion  of  the  kind  ever  known  in  this  country — 
Recollections  of  Mrs.  Binney — Mrs.  Washington's  punctuality  in  return- 
ing calls — Her  manners  easy  and  pleasant — Makes  tea  and  coffee  for  an 
English  guest — Her  plain  cap  and  gray  hairs,  as  described  by  this  visitor 
— Return  to  Mount  Vernon — The  old  life  resumed — Washington  lays  out  the 
future  capital — The  "  White  House  "  named  in  honor  of  the  former  home  of 
his  wife — The  building  afterward  partly  burned  by  the  British — Anecdote  of 
"obstinate"  David  Burns — "What  would  Washington  have  been  if  he 
hadn't  married  the  Widow  Custis?  " — Mount  Vernon  thronged  with  visitors — 
Closing  years  of  Washington's  life — His  death  in  1799— Grief  of  Mrs. 
Washington — Refuses  to  be  comforted — Never  re-enters  the  chamber  in 
which  he  died — Congress  passes  resolutions  of  respect  and  condolence— En- 
treats Mrs.  Washington's  consent  to  the  interment  of  the  remains  in  Wash- 
ington— She  gives  reluctant  consent  to  the  request — Remains  interred  at 
Mount  Vernon,  where  they  are  now — Mrs.  Washington's  resemblance  to  her 
husband — Pier  dependence  upon  his  guidance  and  love — Her  appearance  at 
this  time — Serene  of  countenance — A  devoted  Christian — His  death  a  fatal 
blow — Her  death  two  and  a-half  years  later — Their  bodies  side  by  side — 
Visit  of  Lafayette  to  Mount  Vernon  in  1S26 — Visit  of  Albert  Prince  of  Wales, 
in  i860,  in  company  with  President  Buchanan — Description  of  the  place  as 
it  appeared  before  its  restoration 39 

MRS.  ABIGAIL   ADAMS. 

The  daughter  of  a  New  England  minister — Listructed  by  her  grandmother — 
Durable  impressions  received  from  her — Never  at  school — Always  sick- 
Austere  religious  habits  and  customs  of  her  kindred — Ima£jinative  faculties 


CONTENTS. 

suppressed — A  great  letter-writer — A  reader  of  standard  works — Not  a 
learned  woman — Her  fondness  for  religious  topics  and  discussions — The 
daugluers  taught  home  duties — The  sons  sent  to  college — No  career  for 
woman  outside  the  domestic  circle  where  she  toiled — Marriage  of  Abigail 
Smith  to  John  Adams — Her  parents  rather  opposed  to  the  match — She  was 
the  daughter  and  granddaughter  of  a  minister,  and  hence  superior  to  him  in 
social  position — Incident  connected  with  her  marriage — Her  Father's  ser- 
mon— A  happy  marriage — The  mother  of  three  sons  and  a  daughter — Mr. 
Adams  a  delegate  to  the  Colonial  Convention — Made  the  trip  from  Bos- 
ton to  Philadelphia  on  horseback — Elected  to  Congress — His  wife  alone 
at  Braintree — Hears  news  of  the  battle  of  Lexington — Manages  her  farm  and 
does  her  own  housework — Studies  French  at  night — Long  evenings  alone 
with  her  four  little  children — Three  deaths  in  her  household — Cheers  her 
husband  at  his  far-off  post  of  duty — The  proclamation  of  the  King  arouses 
her  patriotism — In  sight  of  the  cannonading  at  Boston,  and  in  the  midst  of 
pestilence — Mr.  Adams  returns  to  his  suffering  family — Leaves,  after  a 
month's  visit,  for  Philadelphia — The  roar  of  British  cannon  before  Boston — 
Mrs.  Adams  climbs  a  hill  to  watch  the  shells  falling  about  the  city — Writes 
her  husband  from  her  jx^st  of  observation — His  long  absence — No  joy  in  his 
return  to  his  wife  when  she  learns  his  news — Appointed  Minister  to  France 
— Sails  in  company  with  his  eldest  son — Mrs.  Adams  again  alone — Manages 
her  farm  and  teaches  her  children — Does  not  hear  from  her  husband  for  six 
months — Her  business  ability  enables  her  to  support  herself  and  make  her 
home  a  happy  asylum  for  family — Writes  sadly  to  her  husband — He  returns 
after  eighteen  months — Ordered  to  Great  Britain  to  negotiate  peace — Two  of 
his  sons  accompany  him — "  The  cruel  torture  of  separation  " — Letter  to  her 
eldest  son — Lofty  sentiments  and  sound  views  of  the  self-sacrificing  woman — 
Rather  her  boy  were  dead  than  immoral — A  Spartan  mother — Mr.  Adams 
elected  Vice-President — Mrs.  Adams  with  him  in  New  York — Is  the  object 
of  much  social  attention — Dines  with  the  President,  "  the  ministers  and  ladies 
of  the  court" — Washington  gives  her  sugar-]ilums  to  take  to  her  grnndson — 
Mrs.  Adams  congratulates  her  husband  on  his  election  to  the  Presidency — 
Her  feelings  not  those  of  pride  but  solemnity — She  joins  the  President  in 
Philadelphia — Seat  of  government  removed  to  Washington — Letter  to  her 
daughter — Graphic  description  of  Washington — The  city  only  so  in  name 
— None  of  the  public  buildings  finished — The  White  House  cheerless  and 
damp — Fires  in  every  room  to  secure  its  inmates  against  chills — Thirty 
servants  required  to  keep  the  house  in  order — Surrounded  with  forests,  yet 
wood  is  scarce  and  expensive — Mr";.  Adams  returns  the  visits  of  George- 
town ladies — Inconveniences  of  a  new  country — No  fence  or  yard  about  the 
White  House,  and  not  an  apartment  finished — The  East  Room  used  to  dry 
clothes  in — Only  six  chambers  habitable — Mrs.  Washington  sends  a  haunch 
of  venison  from  Mount  Vernon — Invites  Mrs.  Adams  to  visit  her — Mrs. 
Adams  has  no  looking-glasses  and  not  a  twentieth  part  lamps  enough  to  light 
the  house — The  roads  intolerable — The  work  of  a  day  to  make  a  visit — Loca- 
tion of  city  beautiful — Hon.  Cotton  Smith  describes  Washington — The  huts 


lO  CONTENTS. 

of  the  residents  contrast  painfully  with  the  public  buildings — First  New 
Year's  reception  in  iSoi — The  etiquette  of  Washington's  time  adopted — 
Guests  received  in  the  Library — Mrs.  Adams  ill — Returns  to  Quincy,  Massa- 
chusetts— In  the  White  House  four  months — Attends  to  her  husband's  pri- 
vate affairs — Cheerful  and  bright  under  all  circumstances — Retirement  of  Mr. 
Adams  from  public  life — Mrs.  Adams  the  "  Portia  "  of  the  rebellious  prov- 
inces— Her  marked  characteristics,  truthfulness  and  earnestness — Her  place 
in  history — Indifference  to  fashionable  life — Seventeen  years  of  home  life — 
Writes  her  granddaughter  on  her  fiftieth  marriage  anniversarj' — Thankfulness 
for  so  much  happiness — Eldest  son  appointed  Minister  to  Great  Britain  by 
President  Madison — Appointed  Secretary  of  State  by  President  Monroe — 
Death  of  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Abigail  Smith — Friendship  with  President 
Jefferson  broken — Political  differences  the  cause — Silence  of  many  years 
broken  by  the  death  of  Jefferson's  daughter — Her  secoRd  letter  criticising  his 
course  in  the  appointments  to  office — The  correspondence  unknown  to  her 
husband — His  later  endorsement — Jefferson  writes  to  Adams — They  never 
meet  again — Mrs.  Adams'  imposing  appearance — Her  face  strongly  intellec- 
tual, but  never  beautiful — Her  old  age  possessed  of  the  sweetness  of  youth — 
Death  of  Mis.  Adams  in  1818— A  nation's  private  tribute  to  her  worth — 
Jefferson  expresses  his  sympathy  to  Mr.  Adams — Buried  in  the  Congregation- 
alist  Church  at  Quincy — Her  husband  buried  beside  her $7 

MARTHA    JEFFERSON. 

Jeffei-son's  wife  died  before  his  elevation  to  office — No  fonnal  receptions  during 
his  administration — Married  to  Mrs.  Martha  Shelton,  of  Charles  City  county 
— Marriage  bond  drawn  in  his  own  handwriting  found — His  bride  a  beautiful 
and  clever  woman — Exquisite  form  and  fine  complexion — A  fine  conversa- 
tionalist and  musician — How  Jefferson  defeated  his  rival  suitors — They  listen 
outside  while  the  two  sing — Marriage  at  "  The  Forest  " — Trip  to  Monticello 
— Travel  in  a  snow  storm — Arrived  late  at  night — A  bottle  of  wine  serves  for 
fire  and  supper — Happy  married  life — Mother  of  five  children — Governor 
Jefferson  declines  a  mission  to  Europe — Her  health  failing — Flies  from  her 
home  with  her  babe  in  her  arms — Arnold's  march  to  Richmond — Efforts  to 
capture  Jefferson — Wife  and  children  sent  into  the  interior — Monticello  cap- 
tured— Many  negro  slaves  taken  away — Caesar  secretes  the  plate — Is  fastened- 
under  ground  eighteen  hours — Family  return  home — Mrs.  Jefferson  very  ill 
— Clings  to  life — Intense  affection  for  husband  and  children — Jefterson  by 
her  side  until  she  dies — Beautiful  and  .strong  character — The  eldest  daughter 
sent  to  school — Her  youngest  sister  dies — Jefferson  sends  for  Martha  and 
Marie — Placed  at  a  French  convent — Mrs.  Adams'  description  of  Marie — A 

'  girl  of  superior  beauty — Martha  asks  permission  to  remain  in  a  convent — 
Taken  from  school — Jefferson  returns  to  America  with  his  daughters — Mar- 
riage of  Martha  to  Thomas  Macon  Randolph,  Jr.,  her  father's  ward  and  her 
cousin — Marie  is  married  to  Mr.  Eppes,  of  Ei^pington — Jefferson  a  member 
of  Washington's  cabinet — Afterward  Vice-President — Inaugurated  President 
in  iSoi — Letter  of  Sir  Augustus  Foster — Martha  the  mother  of  several  chil- 


CONTENTS.  1 1 

dren — Her  home  near  Monticello — Washington  City  society — Some  novel 
sispects — Incidents  of  a  call — Letter  from  father  to  daughter — Death  of  Mrs. 
Eppes — Personalities  concerning  her — Letter  from  Mrs.  Adams — Her  at- 
tachment to  Marie  Jefferson — Jefferson's  second  inauguration — Martha  Ran- 
dolph and  her  children  at  the  White  House — Washington  unhealthy  in 
summer — Mrs.  Randolph  a  busy  Virginia  matron — "The  sweetest  woman  iu 
Virginia  " — Jefferson's  retirement  to  Monticello — His  daughter  his  house- 
keeper— Hundreds  of  guests — People  watch  for  a  sight  of  the  ex-President 
— A  window-pane  broken  by  a  curious  woman — Men  and  women  gaze  at 
him  as  he  passes  through  his  hall — No  privacy  in  his  home — Jefferson's  letter 
concerning  his  daughter — The  education  of  girls — "  The  apple  of  his  eye  " 
— Were  life  to  end — Loss  of  property — Maitha  the  companion  and  nurse  of 
her  father — Her  children  his  idols — Mr.  Randolph's  ill-health  and  failure — 
Death  of  Jefferson — Mrs.  Randolph  at  his  bed-side — A  little  casket — His  last 
pang  of  life  is  parting  from  her — A  touching  tribute  to  his  daughter — Jeffer- 
son's estate  insolvent — Monticello  sold — Exhibition  of  public  feeling — Death 
of  Mr.  Randolph — The  flimily  separated — Letter  from  her  daughter — Inter- 
esting facts  of  her  family — Death  of  Martha  Jefferson  Ra^ldolph  in  1836-;-  \ 
Buried  beside  her  father  at  Monticello I26 

DOROTHY  PAINK  MADISON, 

Washington  Irving's  letter — Mrs.  Madison's  drawing-room — Her  two  sisters — 
The  daughter  of  Virginians — Granddaughter  of  William  Coles,  Esq.,  of 
Coles'  Hill — Her  parents  join  the  Friends'  Society — Reside  in  Philadelphia 
— Daughter  reared  in  strict  seclusion — Her  sunny  nature — Married  at  nine- 
teen to  a  young  lawyer — Her  sisters — Mrs.  Washington  and  Mrs.  Cults — 
Mrs.  Paine's  fascination  of  manner  and  beauty  of  person — Left  a  widow 
with  an  infant  son — A  general  favorite  in  society — Object  of  much  attention 
— Courted  by  many  suitors  —  Marriage  to  Mr.  Madison,  then  a  member  of 
Congress — The  match  a  brilliant  one — The  bride  of  twenty-three  years  of 
age — The  wedding  at  the  residence  of  her  sister,  in  Virginia — Resides  in 
summer  at  Montpelier — Winters  spent  in  Washington — Generous  and  hospi- 
table— A  hapi'/y  domestic  life — Mr.  Madison  appointed  Secretary  of  State — 
Removal  to  Washiagtoa — Gay  social  life — Her  house  a  radiating  point  for 
friends — A  noble,  high-min<led  woman — He*"  power  of  adaptiveness — Loved 
by  all  parties — A  strong  support  to  her  husband — Dispensed  his  abundant 
wealth  with  open  hand — Received  President  Jefferson's  guests  with  him — 
Election  of  Mr.  Madison  to  succeed  Jefferson — Mrs.  Madison  hostess  of  the 
White  House — Stiffness  and  formality  laid  aside — Mrs.  Madison  never  for- 
getful of  a  name  or  face — Her  field  of  action  her  parlor — Makes  her  hus- 
band's administration  popular  and  brilliant — The  first  four  years  in  the 
White  House — No  children  by  Mr.  Madison — Her  table  ridiculed  by  a  for- 
eign minister — "Abundance  preferable  to  elegance  " — War  with  Great 
Britain — Mr.  Madison's  declaration — Second  appeal  of  the  United  States  to 
arms — The  British  advance  on  Washington — All  the  public  records  removed 
■ — The  people  in  a  panic — "The  enemy  coming" — The  people  flee  from 


1 2  CONTENTS. 

their    homes — Entrance  of    British — The    Capitol  burned — ^The  American 
army  retreats  to  Georgetown — The  glare  of  light  seen  for  miles — The  Presi- 
dent across  the  Potomac — Mrs.  Madison  remains  to  gather  up  valuables- 
Notes  to  her  sister — Houses  fired  all  over  the  city — Mrs.  Madison  urged  to 

fly Waits  to  secure  the  safety  of  General  Washington's  portrait — Colonel 

Custis  comes  from  Mount  Vernon  to  remove  it — Mrs.  Madison  orders  its 
frame  broken — Carried  to  Georgetown — The  White  House  left  in  the  care 
of  servants — Mrs.  Madison  joins  her  husband — The  enemy  ransack  the 
While  House,and  then  fire  it — ^Thieves  pillage  the  burning  building— Furni- 
ture and  family  stores  belonging  to  the  President  lost — A  coarse  pun — The 
War  Department  spared  because  of  the  storm — The  British  commanders  re- 
gretting the  escape  of  the  President  and  his  wife — Wanted  to  be  exhibited  in 
England — A  week  of  terror — No  sleep  or  rest  for  the  frightened  people — 
Terrible  storm — The  British  amazed  at  the  force  of  the  tornado — Appalling 
disasters — Two  cannons  lifted  from  the  ground — The  enemy  anxious  to  leave 
Washington — Mrs.  Madison  in  Virginia — Fleeing  troops  and  panic-stricken 
families — Rumors  of  the  approach  of  the  British — The  elemental  war — Mrs. 
Madison  awaits  the  coming  of  her  husband — Insulted  by  women — Refused 
shelter  from  the  s-loriv. — Madison  charged  with  the  responsibility  of  the  war — 
The  tavern  closed  to  herself  and  escort — ^The  latter  forces  an  entrance — The 
lady  who  did  not  forget  ber  station — People  who  had  been  her  guests  de- 
nounce her — Mrs.  Madison's  anxiety  for  her  husband — The  hoars  drag 
slowly  bv — Reaches  her  at  night-fall — Careworn  and  hungry — A  courier  at 
midnight — The  President  seeks  safety  in  the  distant  woods — No  enemy  com- 
in(T — I'he  evacuation  of  V/ashington  unknown  to  the  President — Bids  his 
wife  disguise  herself  and  fly — Hears  next  day  of  the  retreat — Returns  to  the 
Long  Bridge — Is  refused  a  boat — No  one  recognizes  the  disguised  woman 
r— Gives  her  name  and  is  ferried  over  the  river — Finds  her  home  in  ruins — 
Desolation  everywhere — Seeks  the  residence  of  her  sister — Sends  word  to  the 
President — His  return  to  W'ashington — Rents  the  "Octagon"  and  lives  there 

Treaty  of  peace  signed — Various  residences  of  Mr.  Madison  in  Washington 

— Last  reception  held  by  the  President — The  most  brilliant  ever  held  up  to 
that  date — Peace  commissioners  to  Ghent  present — Heroes  of  the  war  of  l8l2 
— Mrs.  Madison  "  every  inch  a  queen  " — She  offers  Mr.  Clay  a  pinch  of  snuflf 
— Her  bandana  handkerchief — Fond  of  elegant  apparel — Two  visitors  from 
the  West — "  P'rhaps  you  wouldn't  mind  if  I  jest  kissed  you" — A  graceful 
salutation — Mr.  Madison  not  attractive  to  the  ladies — His  charming  wife 
atones  for  his  gravity — His  admiration  for  her  social  characteristics — A 
curious  coincidence — Three  of  the  first  four  Presidents  marry  young  widows 
— Two  of  the  Presidents  childless,  and  all  without  sons — All  Virginians — 
Anecdote  of  Mrs.  Madison — Recollections  of  Mr.  Trist — Led  to  dinner  by 
President  Jefferson — Rage  of  the  British  minister — A  stir  made  about  the 
"insult" — Mr.  Monroe,  Minister  to  England,  informed  of  the  facts — An  ex- 
pected call  for  official  explanations — Mr.  IMonroe  delighted  with  the  prospect 

Precedence  over  his  own  wife  under  analogous  circumstances — Excellent 

materials  in  his  possession — Expresses  his  satisfaction  over  an  opportunity  to 


CONTENTS.  1 3 

retaliate,  which  was  not  granted — Mrs.  Mailison  always*  presided  at  the 
dinners  given  by  President  Jefferson — His  disregard  of  official  etiquette — 
The  British  minister  and  his  wife  never  his  guests  again — Tliomas  Moore 
lampooned  the  President — Disliked  everything  American — Mrs.  Madison's 
regret  over  the  occurrence — Expiration  of  the  President's  second  term — He 
prepares  to  leave  Washington — Mrs.  Madison's  Washington  friends — Sorrow 
over  her  departure  from  the  city — Residence  at  Montpelier — Quiet  country 
life — The  mansion  of  the  ex-President — His  mother  an  inmate  of  his  home- 
Devotion  of  Mrs.  Madison  to  her — The  object  of  the  venerable  lady's  grate- 
ful affection — A  devoted  wife  to  an  appreciative  husband — Admirable  in  all 
the  relations  of  life — "  Cordial,  genial  and  sunny  atmosphere  surrounding 
her" — Her  son — Paine  Todd  an  undutiful  son — The  sorrow  of  her  life — 
Mr.  Madison's  kindness  to  him — His  conduct  heartless  and  unprincipled — 
Death  of  Mr.  Madison — The  end  of  a  noble  career — Offers  Congress  her 
husband's  manuscripts — President  Jackson  sends  a  special  message  to  Con- 
gress regarding  the  subject — Thirty  thousand  dollars  paid  her  for  the  work — 
"  Debates  in  the  Congress  of  the  Convention  during  the  years  17S2-S7" — 
Congress  also  confers  the  franking  privilege  upon  Mrs.  Madison — Votes  her 
a  seat  upon  the  floor  of  the  Senate — The  last  years  of  Mrs.  Madison's  life — 
Her  residence  in  Washington — Beautiful  old  age — Her  public  receptions  on 
national  holidays — The  throng  of  visitors  equal  to  that  assembled  at  the  Presi- 
dent's house — Her  death  in  1849 — Funeral  in  Washington — Aged  eighty-two 
years — Buried  beside  her  husband  at  Montpelier I7» 

ELIZABETH  K.  MONROE. 

The  era  in  which  Mrs.  Monroe  lived — Her  father  an  ex-officer  of  the  British 
Army — Miss  Kortright  a  belle  of  New  York — Her  sister — Mr.  Monroe  a 
Senator  from  Virginia — Fails  in  love  with  the  pretty  girl — Married  during 
the  session  in  17S9 — Reside  in  Philadelphia,  the  second  seat  of  the  General 
Government — Pleasant  home  life  in  that  city — Mr.  Monroe  appointed  Minis- 
ter to  France  in  1794 — The  first  five  years  of  Mrs.  Momoe's  married  life — A 
polished  and  elegant  lady — Proud  of  her  husband  and  of  her  country — Fit 
representative  of  her  countrywomen  at  the  Court  of  St.  Cloud— Her  daughter 
at  school  in  Paris — Mr.  Monroe  an  ardent  advocate  of  free  government — Not 
careful  to  recognize  the  opposite  feeling  in  Imperial  iMance — Unpopular  with 
the  Court — His  recall  asked — Intense  sympathy  for  Lafayette,  then  in  prison 
— Agents  of  the  United  States  employed  in  his  behalf — Mrs.  Monroe  warmly 
interested  in  the  fate  of  Madame  Lafayette — The  private  feelings  of  President 
Washington  not  expressed  in  his  official  communications — Lafayette's  son  his 
guest  while  in  the  United  States — Recognizes  treatv  obligations  with  France 
— Mr.  Monroe  sends  his  wife  to  visit  Madame  Lafayette — The  carriage  of 
the  American  Minister  at  the  prison — Mrs.  Monroe  asks  admittance— 
— Is  permitted  to  see  the  Marchioness — Emaciated  and  prostrated  fronn 
fright— Anticipating  the  summons  of  the  executioner — Her  last  hope  depart- 
ing when  the  sentinel  stops  at  her  cell — Her  visitor  is  announced— Thoughts 


14  CONTENTS. 

of  her  husband  and  America  overcome  her — Sinks  at  the  feet  of  Mrs.  Mon- 
roe— Presence  of  sentinels  preclude  conversation — Mrs.  Monroe  assures  her 
friend  she  would  return  the  following  morning — Speaks  so  as  to  be  heard  by 
those  about  her — The  visit  saves  Madame  Lafayette's  life — Was  to  have 
been  executed  that  afternoon — The  officials  change  their  mind — Is  liberated 
next  day — Attentions  paid  her  by  the  American  Minister  and  his  wife — The 
prestige  of  the  young  Republic  appreciated — Madame  Lafayette's  eldest  son, 
George  Washington,  sent  to  Mount  Vernon  for  safety — She  leaves  Paris  ac- 
companied by  her  two  daughters — Disguised  and  under  the  protection  of 
American  passjiorls — Seeks  the  prison  of  her  husband — Signs  her  consent  to 
share  his  captivity — Stays  by  his  side  until  released — Mr.  Monroe  recalled — 
His  course  defended  in  America — Mrs.  Monroe  proud  of  his  conduct — A 
greater  honor  to  have  saved  Madame  Lafayette  than  to  have  remained  Am- 
bassador— Friendship  between  Monroe  and  Lafayette — Offer  of  pecuniary 
help — Generous  conduct  on  both  sides — Returns  to  New  York — With  her 
family  and  friends — Mr.  Monroe  elected  Governor  of  Virginia — Husband  and 
wife  gladdened  by  this  evidence  of  affection — The  old  commonwealth  proud 
of  her  son — Mrs.  Monroe  the  mistress  of  the  Governor's  mansion  at  Wil- 
liamsburg— Governor  Monroe  appointed  Envoy  Extraordinary  to  France  to 
negotiate  the  purchase  of  Louisiana — Robert  R.  Livingston  the  other  Envoy 
— The  purchase  effected — Mrs.  Monroe  accompanies  her  husband — While  in 
Paris  is  appointed  Minister  to  England — Sent  to  Spain  on  a  mission — Mr. 
Monroe  returned  home  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  War  of  i8l2 — Ten  years' 
absence  in  Europe — Return  to  Oak  Hill,  their  Virginia  estate — Home  life 
not  destined  to  last — Mr.  Monroe  elected  to  the  Legislature — Chosen  Gov- 
ernor a  second  time — Secretary  of  .Slate  under  Madison — Mrs.  Monroe  and 
her  daughters  retire  to  Oak  Hill  before  the  fall  of  Washington — Remains 
until  peace  is  declared — Anxious  about  her  husband — Mr.  Monroe  succeeds 
President  Madison  in  office — Removal  to  the  White  House  in  1817 — Per- 
sonal description  of  her — Mrs.  Monroe  not  like  Mrs.  Madison — Is  not  fond 
of  general  society — Her  health  delicate — She  received  visits  but  returned 
none — Her  "drawing-rooms"  were  largely  attended — An  English  writer's 
comments — Held  once  a  fortnight  on  Wednesday  evenings — The  condition 
of  the  White  House — The  grounds  unimproved — Congress  orders  a  silver 
service — The  furniture  of  the  East  Room  purchased — The  crown  of  Louis 
XVIII.  supplanted  by  the  American  Engle — Mrs.  Monroe  an  invalid  during 
the  second  term — Marriage  of  her  daughter  at  the  age  of  seventeen — Wed- 
ding reception — A  State  Dinner  at  the  White  House — The  East  Room  unfin- 
ished— Mr.  Cooper's  letter — Mrs.  Monroe  weary  of  public  life — Close  of 
President  Monroe's  second  term — Retires  to  Virginia — Assists  in  establish- 
ing the  University  of  Virginia — Chosen  President  of  the  State  Convention  to 
amend  the  Constitution — Mrs.  Monroe  heavily  taxed  with  company — The 
three  ex-Presidents  neighbors — People  from  all  the  world  their  guests — • 
Alone  with  her  husband — Both  daughters  married — .\nxious  for  her  husband 
to  give  up  work — His  last  public  position — Magistrate  of  Loudon  County — 
Death  of  Mrs.  Monroe — Oak  Hill  closed — The  ex-President  resides  in  New 


CONTENTS.  1 5 

York— His  youngest  daughter  his  comfort  in  old  age — His  death  in  1831 — 
Survived  his  wife  one  year,  dying  on  the  Fourth  of  July — Funeral  procession 
the  largest  ever  seen  in  New  York — Samuel  Gouveneur,  Postmaster  of  New 
York  City,  his  son-in-law — Remains  interred  in  New  York — Afterwards 
removed  to  Richmond — Few  descendants  living 21  j 

LOUISA  CATHARINE  ADAMS. 

Mrs.  Adams  the  last  of  the  ladies  of  the  Revolutionary  period — Born  in  Lon- 
don— Her  father,  Mr.  Johnson,  a  Maryland  patriot — United  States  Commis- 
sioner in  France  until  1782 — Consul  to  London — Mr.  Adams  a  guest  of  Mr. 
Johnson — Meets  his  future  wife — Marriage  in  1797 — Mr.  Adams  takes  his 
bride  to  Berlin — Four  years'  residence  there — Returns  to  America — Settles 
in  Boston — Mr.  Adams  elected  Senator — Residence  in  Washington — Pleasant 
era  of  Mrs.  Adams'  life — With  her  own  family — Summers  spent  in  Boston — 
Washington  a  congenial  residence  for  Mrs.  Adams — Eight  years  spent  there — 
Her  husband  appointed  Minister  to  Russia — Mrs.  Adams  accompanies  him — 
Two  children  left  behind — Takes  the  youngest,  an  infant — Long  voyage — 
Arrives  in  St.  Petersburg — Prefers  exile  in  Russia  to  separation  from  her  hus- 
band— In  the  midst  of  stirring  scenes — Europe  a  battle-field — Napoleon 
spreading  terror  everywhere — Shut  up  in  St.  Petersburg — Six  years  in  Russia 
— Death  of  an  infant — Mr.  Adams'  mode  of  life — Respected  for  learning 
and  talent — War  between  England  and  America — Mrs.  Adams  weary  of  Rus- 
sia— Anxious  to  return  home — Mr.  Adams  a  Commissioner  to  Ghent — The 
step-son  of  President  Madison — His  position  greatly  exaggerated  abroad — 
News  from  home — Mrs.  Adams  alone  in  St.  Petersburg  with  her  son — Travels 
to  Pari.!  to  meet  her  husband — Dangers  encountered — Traces  everywhere  of 
war — Passports  of  little  protection — Fastened  in  a  snow-drift — Dug  out  by 
the  peasantry  of  the  neighborhood — Robbed  by  her  own  servants — The  sym- 
bol of  a  Polish  cap — Hears  of  Napoleon's  return  from  Elba — Every  cn^ss- 
road  guarded — Surrounded  by  soldiers — The  presence  of  mind  exhibited  by 
Mrs.  Adams — Meets  her  husband  in  Paris — Witnesses  the  arrival  of  Naj-j. 
leon — Flight  of  the  Bourbons — The  reception  at  the  Tuileries — Ladies  of  the 
Imperial  Court — Napoleon  preparing  for  Waterloo — Advantages  enjoyed  by 
Mrs.  Adams — Events  of  the  hundred  days — Martial  music  heard  on  every 
side — Arrival  of  her  children  from  England  after  six  years  of  separation- 
Departure  for  England — Mr.  Adams  Minister  to  the  Court  of  St.  James — • 
Charles  King's  eulogy  of  Mr.  Adams — Pleasant  life  in  London — The  centre 
of  a  cultivated  circle — Return  to  America — Mr.  Adams  appointed  Secretary 
of  State — Mr.  Adams  the  recipient  of  public  attentions — Grand  banquet  in 
his  honor — Residence  in  Washington — A  charming  home — Multitudes  of 
visitors  entertained  there — Letter  from  Mrs.  Adams  to  John  Adams — Her 
appreciation  of  her  mother-in-law — Her  studies — Does  not  think  highly  of 
the  mental  capacity  of  her  sex — Course  of  reading — How  she  estimates  the 
philosophers — Likes  nothing  so  well  as  the  doctrines  of  Christianity, — Her 
reading  too  diffuse  to  be  beneficial — The  wicked  theories  of  French  authors — 
How  their  \enom  was  destroyed  in  her  case — Her  early  ideas  of  life — Views 

2 


1 6  CONTENTS. 

changed  with  age — Discusses  the  nature  of  democratic  institutions — Tier  faith 
in  the  people — Pride  in  her  name — "  Uneasy  lies  the  head  that  wears  a  crown" 
— Complaints  of  hard  times — The  morals  of  the  day  portrayed — Mrs.  Adams' 
habits  as  a  hostess — No  exclusions  in  her  invitations — Keenly  alive  to  the 
reputation  of  her  husband — Her  success  in  her  semi-official  position — Mr. 
Adams  a  candidate  for  the  Presidency — Violence  of  partisan  warfare — Mrs. 
Adams  lives  more  secluded — Her  husband  elected  Chief  Magistrate — De- 
scription of  the  inaugural  of  Adams — Failure  of  her  health — Presided  at 
pul)lic  receptions — Not  seen  on  other  occasions — Is  tired  of  public  life — En- 
tertains Lafayette — His  affecting  farewell — The  President  and  Mrs.  Adams 
start  to  Quincy — Mrs.  Adams  ill  in  Philadelphia — Mr.  Adams  proceeds 
without  her — Administration  of  Mr.  Adams — Quietness  throughout  the 
world — Much  done  to  consolidate  the  Union — Mr.  Adams  a  learned  man — 
The  man  who  had  read  one  more  book  than  John  Quincy  Adams — Mrs. 
Adams  glad  to  leave  the  White  House — Retires  to  private  life — Enjoys  it  but 
a  short  time — Letter  describing  her  husband  and  home — Mr.  Adams  elected 
a  member  of  Congress — Removes  again  to  Washington — Occasional  visits  to 
Quincy — Illness  of  Mr.  Adams — He  is  struck  with  paralysis — Dies  in  the 
Speaker's  room  in  the  Capitol — -Mrs.  Adams  by  his  side — Funeral  at  the 
Capitol — Remains  deposited  in  the  Congressional  burying-ground — Letter 
from  Mrs.  Adams  to  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives — Her 
thanks  to  the  House  for  the  regard  manifested  for  Mr.  Adams — Mrs.  Adams 
ratiies  to  Quincy — Surrounded  by  her  children  and  relations — A  great 
writer  and  translator — Varied  accomplishments  which  gave  her  pleasure 
in  her  old  age — Died  in  1852 — Her  grave  beside  her  husband's  at  Quincy, 
Mass 238 

RACHEL  JACKSON. 

Party  strife  and  bitterness  of  Jackson's  day — Mrs.  Jackson  a  victim  of  cruel 
misrepresentation — Her  early  life — Daughter  of  Colonel  John  Donelson — 
Emigrants  from  Virginia — Travelling  in  the  wilderness — A  two  thousand 
mile  journey — Thrilling  incidents  and  dangerous  accidents — Indians  dogged 
their  footsteps — Rachel  Donelson  at  the  age  of  twelve — Colonel  Donelson  a 
wealthy  settler — A  person  of  consequence — Removal  to  Kentucky — Marriage 
of  his  daughter — Home  in  Kentucky — Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robards  very  unhappy 
— His  disposition  extremely  unfortunate — Requests  Mrs.  Donelson  to  send 
for  her  daughter — Her  brother  takes  her  to  Tennessee — A  good  daughter-in- 
law — Mrs.  Robards  not  censured — Her  husband  solely  to  blame — A  recon- 
ciliation effected — Andrew  Jackson  a  boarder  at  Mrs.  Donelson's — Mrs. 
Robards  returns  to  her  husband — Unmanly  conduct — Second  separation — 
Jackson  and  his  friend  seek  another  home — Mrs.  Robards  seeks  an  asylum  in 
Mississippi — Her  husband's  threats — Jackson's  sympathy  for  her — Jackson 
accompanies  the  party  to  Natchez — Dangers  from  the  Indians — Jackson  re- 
turns to  Nashville — Judge  Overton's  letters — Robards  divorced  from  his 
wife — Decree  supposed  to  be  final — Marriage  of  Jackson  and  Mrs.  Robards 


CONTENTS.  1 7 

twf)  years  later — Return  to  Nashville — A  seconrl  divoTce — Jackson's  surprise 
and  sorrow — Marriage  ceremony  twice  performed — Information  slow  in  trav- 
elling— No  mails  in  ihos-'-e  days — A  perfect  union — Jackson's  luve  for  his  wife 
— Mrs.  Jackson  a  noble  woman — Hospitable  home — Jackson  buys  the  Her- 
mitage— His  small  log-house — Lafayette  his  guest — A  ball  given  in  his  hoinpr 
— Mrs.  Jackson  adopts  a  child — ^Jacksoifs  love  for  tbe  baby — A  lamb  and  a 
child — Ajidrew  Jackson,  Jr. — After  the  battle  of  New  Orleans — Mrs.  Jackson 
in  that  city — The  recipient  of  iraarked  attentions — A  valuable  present — Her 
dress  of  white  satin — Portrait  at  the  Hermitage — General  Jackson  builds  a 
church — A  new  house  erected — A  present  to  his  wife — The  stately  Hermitage 
— DescriptiiMi  of  the  house — Spacious  and  handsome — An  extensive  garden — 
General  Jackson  appointed  Governor  of  Florida — Mrs.  Jackson  and  the  "two 
Andrews  "  accompany  him — Homesick — Mrs.  Jackson's  dislike  of  the  State 
— No  minister  there — Does  not  like  the  theatre — Her  health  not  good — Pen- 
sacola  not  a  pleasant  place — Mrs.  Jackson's  request  regarding  the  Sabbath — 
Her  wishes  obeyed — Horses  neglected — Inhabitants  Spanish  and  French — 
Governor  Jackson  resigns — Return  to  the  Hermitage — A  journey  of  twenty- 
eight  days — Mrs.  Jackson  receives  much  attention — ^Fifty  caUers  a  day — Her 
health  feeble — Four  years  of  home-life — V«'ith  her  husbarKi  in  New  Orleans — 
His  splendid  reception — Four  days  of  festivity — Jackson  a  Pi'csidential  can- 
didate— Mrs.  Jackson's  disease  asserts  itself — Undue  excitement  its  cause — 
Pxinful  publications  regarding  her — The  facts  of  her  marriage  misunderstood 
— Jackson's  political  enemies — ^Cruel  falsehoods  circulated — Her  heart  broken 
by  slander — "  He  to  whom  she  had  devoted  her  ai?ections^' — General  Jack- 
srm  elected  President — His  wife's  gratitude — Glad  for  iiis  sake — Regretted  the 
necessity  of  leaving  home — "  That  palace  in  Washington  " — Frequent  visits 
to  Nashville — Preparing  for  the  winter — A  fatal  shopping  eccasion — Over- 
hears a  conversation — The  calumnies  her  husband  has  kept  from  her — His 
efifort  to  prevent,  her  suffering — On  her  death-bed  she  tells  him  the  cause  of 
her  illness — A  noble  life  crucified  by  scandal — A  ball  that  did  not  occur — A 
grand  dinner  that  was  not  eaten — Proposed  anniversarj'  festivities — Mrs. 
Jackson  very  ill— Dies  of  spasms  of  the  heart — Grief  of  Jackson — Nashville 
in  mourning — Action  of  the  city  authorities — Forty  years  of  married  life — 
"  Never  an  unkind  word  between  them  " — The  loss  of  such  a  wife — Jack- 
son's convulsive  grief — The  parting  scene — His  farewell  to  the  Iieloved  re- 
mains— A  sad  scene  at  the  funeral — .\  great  throng  of  mourners — Dust  to 
dust — Jackson's  intense  feelings — The  grave  cannot  conquer  it — The  unpar- 
donable crime — A  bruised  and  lonely  heart — Great  symi'w.thy  for  the  old  hero 
— The  grief  of  the  servants  and  neighbors — Testimonials  of  sympathy  from 
many  sources — General  Jackson  a  changed  man — The  pleasant  home-life 
gone — Her  picture  worn  about  his  neck — By  his  bedside  at  night — His  eyes 
fixed  on  it  in  death — Bequeaths  it  to  his  gr.and-daughter — The  monument 
over  the  grave  of  husband  and  wife — The  inscription  on  the  tablets — Jack- 
son's tribute  to  his  dead — They  sleep  side  by  side 272 


1 8  CONTENTS. 

MRS.   KMILY  DONELSON. 

Mistress  of  the  White  House— Daughter  of  Captain  John  Donelson— A  raxy 
beautiful  woman — Wealth  and  high  standing  of  her  father — Known  as  the 
"  lovely  Emily  " — Married  at  sixteen — The  groom  her  cousin,  and  protege 
of  General  Jackson — Major  Donelson  the  private  secretary  of  the  President 
— A  question  of  precedence — Mrs.  Jackson  "  mistress  of  the  Hermitage  " — 
Tact  and  brilliancy  of  Mrs.  Donelson — Personal  description — A  face  of  singu- 
lar fascination — Her  "  inauguration  "  dress — General  Jackson's  love  for  her 
— Arbiter  in  matters  of  etiquette — Her  attitude  during  the  Eaton  controversy 
— Refuses  to  visit  her — The  mother  of  four  children — All  born  in  the  White 
House — Their  christenings  occasions  of  great  ceremony — General  Jackson 
very  fond  of  them — A  lovely  family  gronp — Mrs.  Donelson's  ill  health — 
Compelled  to  leave  Washington — A  victim  of  consirmption — Medical  skill 
unavailing — A   speedy  decline — "Don't  forget,  mamma  " — Death 323 

SARAH  YORKE  JACKSON. 

The  wife  of  Andrew  Jackson,  Jr. — Miss  Yorlce  of  Philadelphia — Well  ediacated 
and  accomplished — Her  marriage — Goes  to  the  White  House  a  bride — Affec- 
tion for  General  Jackson — He  compliments  her  to  a  Pennsylvania  delegation 
— Shares  the  honors  of  hostess — A  devoted  daughter  to  General  Jackson — 
His  declining  years  soothed  by  her — The  hospitality  required  of  her — A  heavy 
tax— Her  dependents  her  special  care — A  happy  mother — Death  of  her  father 
and  her  husband- — Alone  with  her  children — Tlie  Hermitage  a  place  of  mem- 
ories— Death  of  a  son — Still  at  the  Hermitage — The  estate  owned  by  the 
State  of  Tennessee — A  peaceful  old  age 329 

HANNAH  VAN  BUREN. 

Of  Dutch  descent — Born  at  Kinderhook  on  the  Hudson — Ancestry  for  many 
generations  New  Yorkers — Married  to  Mr.  Van  Buren — A  love  affair  Ijegun 
in  childhood — The  young  couple  cousins — Reside  in  Hudson  City — Charm- 
ing home  life — Four  sons  born  to  them — Loss  of  the  youngest — Mr.  Van  Buren 
removes  his  family  to  Albany — A  political  leader — Wealth,  fame  and  honor 
acquired— The  reward  of  twenty  years  of  labor — One  of  New  York's  famous 
lawyers — Mrs.  Van  Buren's  life  a  pleasant  one — High  social  position — De- 
clining health — Long  months  an  invalid — A  modest  and  good  woman — Her 
dying  counsel — The  death-scene  a  remarkable  one— Dead  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-five  years — Burial  custom  omitted  for  the  sake  of  the  poor — "  Sweet 
was  the  savor  of  her  name  " — Died  in  February,  1S19 — Seventeen  years  later 
her  husband  was  President 333 

ANGELICA    VAN    BTJREN. 

Lady  of  the  White  House  in  1838— Daughter  of  Richard  Singleton,  of  South 
Carolina — Her  grandfathers  Revolutionary'  heroes — Her  kinsmen  notable 
people — Early  advantages — Superior  education — High  social  rank — In  Wash- 
ington with  relatives — Mrs.  Madison  a  cousin — Presents  her  to  the  President — 


CONTENTS.  19 

Reception  very  flattering — A  great  favorite  of  the  President's — Marriage  to 
Major  Van  Buren — The  eldest  son  and  private  secretary — Major  Van  Buren 
a  graduate  of  West  Point — His  wife's  first  appearance  as  hostess — A  New 
Year's  Day  Reception — A  universally  admired  bride — The  only  South  Caro- 
lina lady  who  has  held  the  position — A  tour  in  Europe — Presented  at  the 
Court  of  St.  James — Her  uncle  American  Minister — In  London  during  the 
season — The  Emperor  of  Russia  and  other  foreign  notables — Exceptionally 
pleasant  visit — A  three  months'  tour — In  Paris — Attentions  from  General 
Cass,  the  American  Minister — Presented  to  the  King  and  Queen — The  guest 
of  Louis  Philippe — The  King's  unceremonious  attentions — Shows  his  visitors 
over  the  palace — Knocks  at  the  room  of  the  Comte  de  Paris — Tiie  Queen's 
amusement — Her  grandchildren  asleep — The  return  to  America — In  Wash- 
ington when  Congress  met — Closing  year  of  the  administration — Mrs.  Van 
Buren  mistress  of  Lindenwald — Her  winters  spent  in  South  Carolina — Re- 
moves to  New  York  in  1848 — Residence  in  that  city — Three  years'  sojourn 
in  Europe — Home  life  in  New  York — A  long  and  happy  career — Death  of 
her  husband  and  son — Her  own  death 339 

ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

TIk-  wife  of  the  ninth  President — Born  in  the  year  of  Independence — A  native 
of  Morristown,  N.  J. — A  motherless  girl — A  dangerous  journey  through  Brit- 
ish lines — Her  father  a  Colonel  in  the  Continental  Army — Assumes  the  dis- 
guise of  a  British  officer — Takes  his  child  to  her  grandparents  on  Long  Is- 
land— Separated  from  her  for  many  years — Little  Anna's  early  training — Her 
grandmother  an  excellent  woman — A  careful  teacher  and  Christian  guide — 
Her  grandchild  grows  to  womanhood — Sent  to  New  York  to  school — Wiih 
her  grandparents  until  nineteen  years  old — Goes  to  Ohio  with  her  father — 
Colonel  Symmes — A  step-mother — Settles  at  North  Bend — His  second  wife 
— Daughter  of  Governor  Livingston,  of  New  York — Judge  Symmes  a  Judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court — Often  absent  from  home — Anna  Symmes  with  her 
sister  in  Kentucky — Meets  her  future  husband — Captain  Harrison,  of  the 
United  States  Army — In  command  of  Fort  Washington,  the  present  site  of 
Cincinnati — Marriage — A  bride  at  twenty — Captain  Harrison  resigns — 
Elected  to  Congress — Mrs.  Harrison  accompanied  him  to  Philadelphia — 
Visits  Virginia  relations — A  healthy,  handsome  woman — Medium  height  and 
slight  in  person — An  intellectual  face — General  Harrison  appointed  Gov- 
ernor of  Indiana  Territory — Removes  to  Vincennes,  the  seat  of  government — 
Many  happy  years  spent  there — Mrs.  Harrison  popular  and  admired — A 
household  of  love — Twenty  years  of  pleasant  home-life — Governor  Harri- 
son continues  in  jxjwer  until  1812 — Appointed  to  thecommand  of  the  North- 
western Army — The  Battle  of  Tippecanoe — Defeat  of  Tecumseh — General 
Harrison  removes  his  family  to  Cincinnati — Major-General — Marches  to  the 
frontier — Mrs.  Harrison  and  her  children — Long  separated  from  her  husband — 
General  H.iirison  resigns — Removes  to  North  Bend,  on  the  Ohio — Mrs.  Har- 
rison a  pleasant  neighbor — The  mother  of  ten  children — Her  husband  much 
from  home — Responsibility  and  c.ire  of  the  wife  and  mother — Generous  hos- 


20  CONTENTS. 

pitality — The  children  of  the  neighborhood  study  with  her  sons  and  daugh- 
ters— Honored  and  loved  in  all  relations — Loses  several  of  her  children  and 
grandchildren — Thirty  years  of  home  life  at  North  Bend — Her  children 
devoted  to  her — An  incident  of  the  Presidential  canvass — Delegation  of  pol- 
iticians not  welcome — General  Harrison  declines  to  violate  the  Sabbath — 
His  respect  for  his  wife's  feelings — Nominated  for  the  Pi-esidency — Mrs. 
Harrison  greatly  annoyed — Three  candidates  in  the  field — Van  Buren 
elected — A  happy  woman  at  North  Bend — Harrison  the  Whig  candidate  in 
1840 — Idol  of  his  party — An  exciting  canvass — The  financial  condition  of 
the  country — "Tippecanoe  and  Tyler  too" — Stirring  campaign  songs — In- 
tense interest  manifested — Log-cabins  and  military  parades — The  Whigs  tri- 
umphant—General Harrison  elected — Mrs.  Harrison  grateful  for  her  hus- 
band's success — Sorry  for  herself — Not  fond  of  worldly  gayeties — A  domestic 
and  retiring  nature — General  Harrison  leaves  home — Welcome  at  Washing- 
ton— Visits  his  old  home  in  Virginia — The  inauguration  in  1841 — A  gala 
day — General  Harrison  rides  a  white  charger — Canoes  and  cabins  in  the  pro- 
cession— Throngs  of  people  from  distant  places — Mrs.  Harrison  remains  at 
North  Bend  to  seitle  her  husband's  affairs — Preparing  for  her  long  stay  in 
W^ashington — Her  husband  accompanied  by  their  daughter  in-law,  Mrs.  Jane 
F.  Harrison — Several  relatives  of  President  Harrison  in  the  White  House — 
The  first  month  of  Presidential  life — General  Harrison  killed  by  office-seek- 
ers— The  Whigs  clamorous  for  place — Wealc  and  aged  he  sinks  under  the 
pressure — Dies  the  4th  of  April — One  month  in  the  White  House — Funeral 
in  the  East  Room — Temporarily  buried  in  Washington — The  Capital  in 
mourning — Mr.  Willis's  poem — Mrs.  Harrison  apprised  of  her  loss — Antici- 
pating a  speedy  reunion  when  the  messenger  arrives — Preparations  stopped — ■ 
A  grief-stricken  woman — Return  of  her  daughter-in-law  and  sons — A  change: 
of  residence— Children  and  grandchildren  pay  her  reverence — Resides  with 
her  son — An  interested  observer  of  events — Her  views  regarding  slavery — 
The  civil  war — Her  grandsons  in  the  army — A  cheerful,  contented  spirit  to 
the  end — Death  at  eighty-nine — Survived  her  husband  nearly  a  quarter  of  a 
ceratury — Buried  beside  her  husband — Their  graves  at  North  Bend 346 

LETITIA   CHRISTIAN   TYLER. 

A  Virginian — Her  father  a  friend  of  Washington's — A  gentleman  of  fortune 
and  position — A  member  of  the  Legislature  for  many  years — Letitia  Christian 
a  most  refined  and  modest  girl — One  of  the  belles  of  West  Virginia — Her 
suitors — John  Tyler  her  lover — A  rising  young  lawyer  and  son  of  Governor 
John  Tyler — Marriage  in  1813 — The  union  approved  by  both  families — ^The 
wedding  festivities  at  Cedar  Grove — The  young  couple  in  their  home  in 
Charles  City  county — A  happy  marriage — A  husband  whose  affections  are 
satisfied  and  his  pride  gratified — A  love-letter  of  the  olden  time — Mr.  Tyler 
for  several  years  a  member  of  the  Legislature — His  wife  in  Richmond  but 
rarely — Kept  at  home  by  her  young  children — ^Two  died  in  infancy — Mr. 
Tyler  elected  Governor — Mrs.  Tyler  mistress  of  the  Executive  mansion — 
Dispensing  its  honors  with  ease  and  grace — Her  young  children  about  her — 


CONTENTS.  2 1 

Her  husband  elected  to  Congress — She  return>  to  her  country  home — One  win- 
ter in  \Yabhington — A  notable  house-wife — Her  home  the  abode  of  comfort 
and  beauty — Maintained  thepecuniaiy  independence  of  her  husband — A  ma- 
tron of  the  old  school — A  letter  from  her  daughter-in-law — Description  of  Mrs. 
Tyler  and  her  home — Mrs,  Tyler's  health  fails — Her  husband  becomes 
President — Removal  to  Washington — Her  regrets  at  leaving  her  home — Be- 
comes the  mistress  of  the  White  House — Her  great  fondness  for  flowers — 
Mrs.  Roiiert  Tyler  her  representative  in  society — Her  letter  to  her  sister — 
Rarely  seen  at  the  receptions  or  state  dinners — Her  daughter  Elizabeth  mar- 
ried, in  the  East  Room — Mr.  Webster  and  Mrs.  Madison  at  the  wedding — 
Mrs.  Tyler  present — Mrs.  Semple's  letter — The  bride  returns  to  Virginia  to 
live — The  youngest  daughter  still  a  child — The  President  gives  private  balls 
with  dancing — Washington  Irving  appointed  Minister  to  Spain — Letters  from 
Major  Tyler — A  levee  at  the  White  House — Mrs.  Tyler's  health  fails — Her 
death — Her  funeral  in  the  White  House — The  remains  conveyed  to  Virginia 
— A  committee  of  the  citizens  of  Washington  escort  the  body — The  Piesident 
and  all  his  family  attend  it  to  its  resting-place — Her  loss  mourned  by  her  old 
friends — The  President  retires  to  his  home — Remains  in  seclusion  until  Con- 
gress meets — A  sad  return  to  Washington 366 

JULIA  GARDINER  TYLER. 

The  second  marriage  of  John  Tyler — His  bride  Miss  Julia  Gardiner— The  first 
and  only  marriage  of  a  President — The  event  much  discussed — Miss  Gardi- 
nera  beautiful  young  lady — Educated  in  New  York — A  resident  of  Gardiner's 
Island,  New  York  Bay — Travels  in  Europe — Her  father  her  escort — Visits 
Washington  with  him,  and  meets  the  President — Invited  to  take  an  excursion 
— Captain  Stockton  in  charge  of  the  parly — The  trip  to  Alexandria — Guests 
invited  on  deck  to  witness  the  firing  of  cannon — The  President  and  ladies  in 
the  cabin — Gentlemen  on  deck — A  terrible  catastrophe — Piercing  cries  of  the 
wounded — Mr.  Gardiner  among  the  victims — The  bodies  conveyed  to  the 
White  House — Funeral  services  in  the  East  Room — Miss  Gardiner  prostrated 
with  grief — An  only  child — The  President's  interest  in  her — Si.x  months  later 
they  were  married — The  ceremony  performed  in  New  York — Grand  reception 
at  the  White  House — A  beautiful  bride — Mistress  of  the  White  House  eight 
months — Close  of  the  administration — Ex-President  a  Virginia  farmer — Re. 
sides  at  his  estate  on  the  James  river — Mrs.  Tyler  the  mother  of  many  chil- 
dren— Death  of  the  ex-President  in  1862 — Mrs.  Tyler  returns  to  New  York — 
Resides  at  Carleton  Hill,  Staten  Island — Losses  of  property — Asks  Congress 
for  a  pension — Subsequent  residence  in  Georgetown,  Maryland 397 

SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

I'he  daughter  of  a  Tennessee  farmer —  Reared  in  easy  comfort — Educated  at  a 
Moravian  school — A  happy  girlhood — Clouds  and  sunshine — Married  at  nine- 
teen— The  wedding  of  James  Knox  Polk  and  Sarah  Childress — Mr.  Polk  a 
member  of  the  Legislature — Elected  to  Congress — Represents  his  district  for 
fourteen  sessions — Speaker   of    the   Huuse    of  Representatives — Mrs.    Polk 


22  CONTENTS. 

popular  in  Washington — Is  conspicuous  in  society — An  interested  spectator 
of  passing  events — Studies  poHiics — Her  Tennessee  home — Summers  spent  in 
it — A  member  of  the  l're>l)ylerian  Church — Mr.  Polk  elected  Governor  of 
Tennessee — Removes  to  Nashville — Mrs.  Polk  among  old  friends — Devotes 
lier  time  to  social  duties — The  Presidential  campaign  of  1840 — Political  ran- 
cor and  animosity — The  bearing  of  the  Governor's  wife — Governor  Polk  the 
Presidential  can  lidate  of  1844 — Henry  Clay  his  opponent — Election  of  Gov- 
ernor Polk — Inaugurated  in  1845 — A  disagreeable  day — Mrs.  Polk  mistress 
of  the  White  House — Has  no  children  to  occupy  her  time — Her  weekly  re- 
ceptions— Received  her  company  sitting — Great  dignity  of  Mrs.  Polk — A 
daughter  of  the  old  school — A  woman  of  strict  decorum — No  dancing 
allowed  in  the  White  House — Mis.  Polk's  admirers — Her  personal  appear- 
ance— Excellent  taste  in  dress — Poetical  tribute  from  Mrs.  Ann  S.  Stephens — 
The  receptions  largely  attended — Mrs.  Polk's  costume — Di>tinguished  people 
])resent — A  neat  compliment — The  war  with  Mexico  inaugurated — Its  con- 
tinuance until  1848 — President  Polk's  aflable  manners — Newspaper  compli- 
ments to  Mrs.  Polk — Dangerous  illness  in  the  Wiiite  House — Taylor  elected 
President — Ex-President  Polk  gives  a  dinner  party  to  him — The  closing  levee 
at  the  White  House — The  farewells  to  the  ex-President  and  Mrs.  Polk — De- 
parture from  Washington — Demonstrations  of  respect — Arrival  at  Nashville 
— ^A  fitting  welcome — Purchase  of  Polk  Place — A  contemplated  tour  to  Eu- 
jope — 111  health  of  Mr.  Polk — His  death — Buried  in  the  grounds  of  his  late 
residence — A  marble  temple — Mis.  Polk  resides  alone — Every  courtesy  and 
sympathetic  attention  paid  her — The  ex-President's  study  kept  as  he  left  it 
— Public  marks  of  respect  paid  Mrs.  Polk — The  members  of  the  Legislature 
pay  her  New  Year's  calls — During  Confederate  days — Mrs.  Polk  a  type  of  a 
class  passing  away — A  descriptive  letter — .^n  old  age  of  comfort  and  peace 
— Reticent   concerning   herself — Surrounded  by  relatives  and  friends 400 

MARGARKT  TAYLOR. 

The  wife  of  an  army  officer — Little  known  to  the  public — Opposed  to  public 
notice — General  Taylor  a  frontier  oflicer — The  hero  of  the  Black  Hawk  and 
the  Seminole  wars — Mrs.  Taylor's  army  experience — Never  willingly  sepa- 
rated from  her  husband — An  example  of  wifely  devotion — With  her  husband 
at  Tampa  Bay — A  quarter  of  a  century  of  tent  life — Always  at  the  side  of 
her  husband — A  happy  and  contented  wife — A  very  domestic  woman — Her 
housekeeping  accomplishments — Mrs.  Taylor  a  Maryland  lady — Received  a 
practical  education — Her  one  ambition — Married  in  early  life — Her  husband 
a  young  officer — Removal  to  the  West — Her  attentions.to  her  husband — Her 
children — Sent  to  her  relatives  to  be  reared  and  educated — Rapid  promotion 
of  her  husband — His  wife  the  presiding  genius  of  the  hosjiital — The  com- 
forts of  a  home  always  his — Established  at  Baton  Rouge — The  pretty  cottage 
on  the  river  bank — Once  a  Spanish  commandant's  house — A  delightful  home 
at  Inst — Mrs.  Taylor  and  her  two  daughters — Busy  with  household  cares — 
Domestic  life  complete — War  with  Mexico — General  Taylor  ordered  to  the 
front — Miss  Betty  in  the  perfection  of  her  womanhood — Her  happy  home 


CONTENTS.  23 

life — The  "Army  of  Orcupation  " — General  Taylor  made  Commander-in- 
Chief — Mrs.  Taylor  and  other  daughters  remain  in  their  home — Honors  to 
General  Taylor — Mrs.  Taylor's  success  with  her  garden  and  dairy — An  ex- 
ample to  the  young  officers'  wives — Has  a  chapel  prepared  and  the  EpiscojMl 
services  read — A  rector's  occasional  presence  secured — A  handsome  church 
erected  later — The  garrison  ch.ipel  a  popular  resort — Many  officers'  wives  at 
the  post — Their  anxiety  over  the  war — Battles  fouglit  and  officers  killed — 
Mrs.  Taylor's  strength  and  cuuiagc — A  runaway  match — Miss  .Sarah  Tay- 
lor's marriage  to  Lieutenant  Jofferson  Davis — General  T.aylor's  opposition  to 
his  daughters  marrying  officers — His  displeasure  over  the  elopement — Away 
from  home  at  the  time — His  rage  at  Lieutenant  Davis's  conduct — No  honor- 
able man  would  so  act — Death  of  Mrs.  D.ivis — No  reconciliation  with  her 
father — The  loss  a  great  trial  to  him — Mrs.  Taylor  deeply  affected — General 
Taylor's  sense  of  sorrow — Meets  Jeffer^on  Davis  at  Buena  Vista — Reconcilia- 
tion on  the  battle-field — An  embrace  on  the  battle-field — The  end  of  the  cam- 
paign— General  Taylor  a  hero — Miss  Betty  the  object  of  much  interest— The 
Presidential  candidacy — Taylor  elected — The  cottage  on  the  river  a  Mecca — 
A  year  of  great  excitement— Mis.  Taylor's  hospitality — Her  indifference  to 
public  honors — Her  desire  for  retirement — "A  plot  to  deprive  her  of  her  hus- 
band's society  " — The  army  life  ended — Miss  Betty  Taylor's  marriage — A 
bride  at  twenty-two — Her  husband,  Major  Bliss,  her  father's  Adjutant-Gen- 
eral— Mistress  of  the  \Vhite  Houst- — Mrs.  Taylor  declining  responsibility — 
"Miss  Betty"  the  hostess — An  attractive  woman — Tlie  inauguration — Wild- 
est enthusiasm — Washington's  welcome  to  the  nation's  icTol — A  grand  ball — 
Scenes  at  the  ball — General  Taylor's  apjiearance — Madame  Bodisco's  dress — • 
Zachary  Taylor's  favorite  child — Her  appearance  as  she  entered  the  ball-room 
— Timid  and  faltering  in  step — Tlie  vast  crowd  pleased — Overwhelming  en- 
thusiasm— The  home  life  at  the  White  House — Mrs.  Taylor  absent  from  offi- 
cial entertainments — Her  simi^le  habits  ridiculed — The  summer  passed  in 
quietness — A  reception  to  Father  Matthew — The  public  not  satisfied — A  de- 
sire for  greater  ostentation  at  the  White  House — The  following  winter — Offi- 
cial life  begun — Distinguished  men  in  the  Cabinet — The  admission  of 
California — Fiery  eloquence  of  Clay — Webster  and  Calhoun  members  of  the 
Senate — Political  excitement — The  change  in  the  President's  manner — Be- 
gins to  realize  the  opposition — Is  equal  to  the  emergency — Mrs.  Taylor 
abandons  domestic  affairs — Devotes  herself  to  social  duties — A]-)preciates  the 
importance  of  her  elevation — More  ostentation  displayed — A  social  revolu- 
tion— The  new  era  inaugurated  by  the  ladies — Reception  on  the  first  anniver- 
sary of  the  inauguration — rThe  President's  family  appear  to  advantage — Gen- 
eral Taylor  a  surprise  to  his  friends — A  new  role  played  with  success — Miss 
Betty  the  leader  of  society — The  press  expresses  admiration — Cabinet  changes 
— The  general  character  of  the  administration — The  spring  passes  away — 
Seventy-fourth  anniversary  of  National  Independence — Laying  the  corner- 
stone of  the  Washington  Monument — General  Taylor  presides — The  day  in- 
tensely hot — Exposed  to  the  sun — .\  notable  event— -The  complaints  of  Gen- 
eral Taylor  regarding  the  heat — Never  experienced  such  heat  in  Florida  or 


24  CONTENTS. 

Mexico — His  return  to  the  White  House — Drank  freely  of  cold  water  and 
ate  fruit — Violent  illness — General  Taylor  has  the  cholera — His  premonitions 
regarding  the  end — The  remarks  concerning  his  performance  of  duty — "  His 
motives  misconstrued;  his  feelings  grossly  betrayed  " — Mrs.  Taylor  admits 
the  possibility  of  his  death — Bitterly  regrets  their  coming  to  Washington — 
Prostrate  at  her  husband's  bedside — Her  children  about  her — The  death-bed 
scene — The  last  good-bye — The  grief  of  the  family — Heart-rending  cries  of 
agony — The  end — The  removal  of  the  President's  remains — Mrs.  Taylor's 
retirement  from  the  White  House — Her  dream  of  happiness  ended — Never 
alluded  to  her  life  in  Washington — With  her  friends  in  Kentucky — Finds  per- 
sonal utterances  of  sympathy  oppressive — Retires  to  her  son's  residence — 
Her  home  near  Pascagoula,  Louisiana — Leads  a  quiet  life — Death  of  Major 
Bliss — A  second  marriage — The  historical  name  laid  aside — The  end  of  a 
public  career 425 

ABIGAIL  FILLMORE. 

A.  daughter  of  Rev.  Lemuel  Powers — Born  in  1798 — A  descendant  of  Henry 
Leland,  of  Sherbourne — Loses  her  father  in  infancy — Her  mother  her 
teacher  and  guide — Removal  to  Cayuga  county,  New  York — A  frontier  set- 
tlement— Stern  lessons  of  poverty — A  studious  and  ambitious  girl — Teaches 
school  during  the  summer  months — A  well-educated  woman — The  omnip- 
otence of  energy — Miss  Power's  blessing  of  physical  health — Personal  ap- 
pearance— Flowing  curls  of  flaxen  hair — Her  face  a  mirror  of  her  soul — 
Much  strength  of  character — Marriage  of  her  mother — The  daughter  a 
teacher — Her  home  with  a  relative — Meets  Mr.  Fillmore — A  teacher  of  the 
village  school  in  winter — The  father's  unwise  selection  of  work — The  son 
ambitious  and  studious — Studying  law  while  a  clothier's  apprentice — A 
friendly  hand  extended — The  youth  assisted — The  foundation  of  usefulness 
laid — Removes  to  Erie  county — Miss  Powers  his  inspiration  and  hope — Their 
engagement — Separated  for  three  years — Too  poor  to  make  a  journey  of  150 
miles — Married  in  1826 — Life  in  the  wilderness — Poor  and  content — Their 
first  home — The  wife  teaches  school,  keeps  house,  and  helps  her  husband — 
Relieves  him  of  care — His  progress  rapid — Practises  law — Elected  to  the 
Legislature — Mrs.  Fillmore  a  true  help-meet — Intellectually  her  husband's 
equal — A  sunny  nature — Two  children  in  her  home — Letters  to  an  old 
friend — Removal  to  Buffalo — Mr.  Fillmore  prospering — Domestic  happiness 
— Social  pleasures — Mr.  Fillmore's  tribute  to  his  wife — Greeted  his  entire 
married  life  with  smiles — Her  supreme  devotion  to  her  husband — Mr.  Fill- 
more in  Congress — Elected  Vice-President — Death  of  President  Taylor^Mr. 
Fillmore's  accession  to  the  Presidency — Mrs.  Fillmore  in  the  White  House — 
Her  daughter  assumes  the  first  position — Mrs.  Fillmore  in  feeble  health — 
Fond  of  the  society  of  friends — Her  love  of  music — Mrs.  Fillmore  a  great 
reader — No  library  in  the  Wiiite  House — President  Filmore  asks  an  appro- 
priation— Mrs.  Fillmore  arranges  the  library — A  happy  gathering  place — 
The  weekly  receptions  at  the  White  House — Dinner  parlies — .\  large  circle 
of  cultured  people  in  Washington — Their  welcome  to  the  White  House— 


CONTENTS.  25 

,  Flowers,  music,  an<!  literary  entertninment? — Mrs.  Fillmcre's  pride  in  her 
position — Deeply  rej^reis  her  ili-heallh — Her  son  and  daughter  assist  her  in 
all  ways — Visit  of  the  President's  father — "  Cradle  him  in  a  sap-trough,  sir" 
Attentions  paid  the  venerable  man — A  gradual  failure  of  health — Mrs.  Fill- 
more's last  illness — Death — Buried  in  Buffalo — The  affection  of  her  family — ■ 
Mr.  Fillmore's  devotion  to  her  memory — Lines  on  her  death 457 

MARY    ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

The  only  daughter  of  President  Fillmore — Lady  of  the  White  House — A  cul-  ' 

tured  woman — Intimacy  with  Harriet  Ilosmer — A  linguist,  musician,  and 
scholar — Presides  at  the  White  House  with  great  dignity — A  credit  to  her 
sex — Educated  by  Miss  Sedgwick — Qualified  herself  to  leach — Studied  at 
the  State  Normal  School — Graduated  with  high  honors — Her  father  becomes 
President — Becomes  the  first  lady  in  the  land — A  successful  career — Returns 
the  affection  bestowed  upon  her — High  social  qualities — Her  mother's  death 
— The  pride  and  comfort  of  her  father — \  visit  to  her  grandfather — Sudden 
illness — Her  father  summoned — Dies  of  cholera — The  blow  a  heart-rending 
one — Her  father  and  brother  left  alone — Only  twenty-two — Many  tributes  to 
her  memory — Ageneral  favorite  in  society — Wife  and  daughter  buried  in  less 
than  one  year 474 

JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

The  daughter  of  Rev.  Jesse  Appleton,  D.  D.,  President  of  Bowdoin  College  — 
Reared  in  an  atmosphere  of  cultivation — A  gifted  child — Delicate  and  in- 
tensely sensitive — Mental  qualities — Married  in  1834 — Mr.  Pierce  a  gifted 
man — Politics  utterly  distasteful  to  Mrs.  Pierce — A  union  of  lasting  happi- 
ness— A  devoted  husband — Personal  popularity  of  Mr.  Pierce — A  public  po- 
sition undesired — A  good  wife,  mother,  and  friend — Home  at  Concord — Mr. 
Pierce  resigns  his  seat  in  the  Senate — Loss  of  two  sons — Resumes  the  practice 
of  law — Tendered  the  position  of  Attorney-General — His  wife's  illness  his 
reason  for  declining — An  invalid  most  of  the  time — Mr.  Pierce  enlists  in  the 
army — Goes  to  Mexico — Returns  a  Brigadier-General — Absent  from  home 
nearly  a  year — A  wife's  anxiety — Left  alone  with  an  only  son — Mr.  Pierce 
nominated  for  the  Presidency — His  election — Death  of  her  only  child — 
Killed  on  a  railroad  train — A  bright  boy  of  thirteen — Husband,  wife,  and 
child  go  down  together — The  search  for  the  boy — Still  in  death — A  sad  re- 
turn home — Mistress  of  the  White  House  under  sad  circumstances — In 
feeble  health  and  deep  grief — Always  present  at  the  public  receptions — Pre- 
.sided  at  State  dinners — Agreeable  memories  of  Mrs.  Pierce  in  Washington — 
Her  observance  of  the  Sabbath — The  influence  she  exerted — Retirement  of 
President  Pierce — Travels  abroad — Six  months  in  Madeira — .V  long  sojourn 
in  the  old  world — Death  of  Mrs.  Pierce  in  1863 — Kindly  things  said  of  her 
— Death  of  Mr.  Pierce  in  1869 484 

HARRIET   LANE. 

The  niece  of  James  Buchanan — Her  name  nearly  associated  with  his  fame— 


26  CONTENTS. 

Given  to  his  care  when  an  infant — A  child  to  him — The  ancestry  of  Pennsyl- 
vania blood — Her  grandfather — Family  of  James  Buchanan — His  favorite 
sister — Married  to  Eliot  T.  Lane — Mr.  Lane's  position — Their  youngest 
child — A  vivacious  and  mischievous  girl — Little  Harriet's  impressions  of  her 
uncle — Death  of  her  mother  and  father — Possessed  of  viforldly  goods — 
Chooses  her.  uncle's  home — His  pride  in  this  affectionate  child — Her  guide, 
philosopher,  and  friend — "  She  never  told  a  lie" — A  wilful  domestic  outlaw 
— An  anecdote  of  her  girlhood — Her  uncle's  rebuke — Harriet  sent  to  school 
— Objections  to  her  teachers — Her  letters  to  her  uncle — Under  surveillance — 
Early  hours,  brown  sugar  and  cold  hearts— Another  school  selected — Her 
sister  her  companion — Three  years  of  study — Fond  of  music — A  visit  to  Bed- 
ford Springs — Her  uncle  makes  her  happy — In  a  convent — In  Washington 
every  month — Delightful  visits — Miss  Lane's  popularity  at  school — A  favor- 
ite with  the  sisters — The  nuns  instruct  her  in  music — Her  imcle's  letters — 
Graduated  with  honor — Loved  and  regretted  by  her  school-mates — A  beau- 
tiful woman — Personal  description — Taste  in  dress — Her  uncle's  idol — His 
account  of  her  athletic  powers — Anecdote  of  a  race  she  ran — At  Wheatland 
— Her  fondness  for  reading  aloud — Discusses  politics  and  plans  improvements 
about  the  grounds — Gay  visits  to  different  cities — Admired  by  gentlemen—  . 
Her  uncle's  house  invaded  by  her  lovers — Her  brothers  and  sister — Mr. 
Buchanan  appointed  Minister  to  England — His  services  to  his  country — In 
Congress,  Minister  to  Russia,  Secretary  of  State — Twice  offered  a  seat  upon 
the  Supreme  Bench — Miss  Lane's  entrance  into  English  society — Publicly 
identitied  with  Mr.  Buchanan — Her  rank — The  Queen  her  admirer — Decides 
her  place  in  the  diplomatic  corps  for  her — A  blooming  beauty — First  appear- 
ance at  a  drawing-room — A  memorable  occasion — Unconscious  of  the  atten- 
tion she  attracted — Mr.  Buchanan's  remark  to  her — Distinguished  attentions 
of  th,e  Queen — Regarded  with  favor  liy  the  royal  family — Added  greatly  to 
the  .social  reputation  of  her  uncle — An  elegant-looking  couple — A  delightful 
specimen  of  American  womanhood — The  guest  of  distinguished  people — 
Offers  of  marriage — Confides  her  love-aftairs  to  her  uncle — Brightest  years 
of  her  life — Miss  Lane's  love  for  England  and  English  people — An  incident 
of  her  stay  abroad — Travels  on  the  continent — With  Mr.  Mason's  family  in 
Paris — Their  guest  for  two  months — Miss  Lane  a  great  belle — With  her 
uncle  at  Oxford — The  degree  of  Doctor  of  Civil  Laws  conferred  on  Mr. 
Tennyson  and  Mr.  Buchanan — The  students  cheer  her — Their  admiration 
openly  expressed — Return  to  America — Leaves  her  uncle  behind — He  re- 
grets the  separation — Long  letters  to  her — The  purpose  of  her  coming  home 
• — At  Wheatland- — Her  sister  to  join  her — Death  of  her  sister — Mr.  Buchanan's 
return — Nominated  for  the  Presidency — Miss  Lane's  social  duties — Mistress  of 
the  White  House — Death  of  her  brother — A  terrible  blow  to  her — The  recipient 
of  much  sympathy — Elegant  manners  of  the  Lady  of  the  White  House- — The 
most  admired  woman  in  America — Her  life  a  series  of  honors  and  pleasures — 
The  formal  receptions — The  President's  a]-)pearance — His  niece  by  his  side — 
A  trying  social  position — Visit  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  to  this  country — The 
guest  of  the  President — A  delightful  visit — An  occurrence  of  memorable  in- 


CONTENTS.  2 "] 

terest — Visit  to  Mount  Vernor — The  Prince  a  pleasant  one«t— His  frank  man- 
ners and  interest  in  social  mailers — Wishes  to  dance — The  President  declines 
to  permit  it — The  departure  of  the  Prince — Letter  from  the  Queen  and  ihe 
Prince — Presents  the  President  with  his  portrait — Sends  Miss  Lane  engravings 
of  the  Royal  Family — Presented  to  them,  not  to  the  nation — Letter  from  Lord 
Lyons  to  Mr.  Buchanan — The  closing  year  of  the  administration — Miss  Lane 
a  comt'ort  to  her  uncle — The  approaching  war — A  time  of  anxiety — The  Presi- 
dent's gratitude  for  her  admirable  demeanor — Faithfully  represents  him  in 
his  drawing-room — Retirement — At  Wheatland — Continued  attentions — En- 
thusiastic admirers — Miss  Lane  joins  the  church — No  other  relative  than  her 
two  uncles — Engagement  to  Mr.  Johnston — Marriage  at  Wheatland — The 
struggle  between  two  loves — Mr.  and  Mrs.  Johnston's  tour  to  Cuba — Set- 
tle in  Baltimore — A  luxurious  home — A  gift  for  "  the  lady  of  his  dreams  " — 
Happiness  of  the  young  couple — Mrs.  Johnston  as  a  wife  and  mother — Death 
of  her  uncle — In  summer  at  Wheatland — A  happy  life — Later  shadows — 
Death  of  her  eldest  son — A  noble  youth — Letter  from  Judge  Black — A  great 
bereavement ^9^ 

MARY  TODD  LINCOLN. 

Ambitious  to  go  to  the  White  House — A  hope  long  entertained — The  desire 
gratified — Impressed  with  this  feeling  in  early  youth — Calculated  the  proba- 
bilities of  such  a  success  with  friends — Refused  to  marry  a  statesman — Ac- 
cepts a  less  brilliant  man  believing  in  his  future — A  Kentuckian  by  birth — 
Member  of  the  Todd  family — Childhood  and  youth — Restless  and  not  happy 
at  home — Goes  to  Springfield,  Illinois — The  attractions  of  this  place — Resi- 
dence with  her  sister — Marriage  to  Abraham  Lincoln — Their  home  at  the 
Globe  tavern — The  husband's  letter — Early  married  life — Mr.  Lincoln  elected 
to  Congress — His  wife  and  children  at  home — State  of  the  country — The 
public  life  of  Mr.  Lincoln — His  fondness  for  his  children — A  good  husband 
and  kind  man — Mrs.  Lincoln  a  fortunate  Avoman — The  mother  of  four  chil- 
dren— Her  pleasant  home — The  aspirations  and  efforts  of  her  hus!)and — His 
character  untarnished  by  corruption — The  place  he  fills — The  basis  of  his 
greatness — The  time  of  war  and  anxiety — Less  fortunate  than  any  of  her  pre- 
decessors— The  people  not  gay — Social  duties  ignored — The  conditions 
under  which  her  Washington  life  was  passed — Preceding  events — Repub- 
lican Convention  of  i860 — The  nomination  of  Mr.  Lincoln — Mrs.  Lincoln's 
excitement — Her  husband's  thoughtfulness — His  remark  about  her — The 
excitement  over  the  result — Springfield  crowded  with  strangers — A  great 
crowd  at  Mr.  Lincoln's  house — An  elated  woman — Her  husband  a  grave 
man — Had  none  of  the  airs  of  eminence — The  same  honest,  simple-hearted 
man — Answered  his  own  bell — Mrs.  Lincoln  annoyed  by  visitors — Her  hus- 
band receives  his  guests  elsewhere — Not  inclined  to  be  friendly — Her  im- 
proper estimate  of  her  position — Very  ambitious  but  not  conciliatory — A 
singular  circumstance — Superstition  of  Mr.  Lincoln — The  thiice  repeated 
apparition — His  wife's  interpretation  of  it — A  sign  of  his  future  honors  and 
sudden  death— Viewed  in  the  light  of  subsequent  events — Its  startling  import 


28  CONTENTS. 

— Mrs.  Lincoln  starts  for  Washingion — Her  three  sons  with  her — At  Spring- 
field— A  salute  of  thirty-four  guns — At  Cincinnati— The  family  of  General 
Harrison — The  inauguration — General  Scott  in  command  of  the  troops — An 
exciting  day  in  Washington — Presidents  Buchanan  and  Lincoln — The  oath 
of  office  administered — At  the  White  House — Mrs.  Lincoln  and  her  sisters 
— The  first  levee — The  lady  of  the  White  House — Description  of  her  appear- 
ance— The  desire  of  her  heart  gratified — A  fortunate  woman — Fond  of 
society  and  excitement — Not  equal  to  the  emergency — Her  conduct  criticised 
— State  dinners  abandoned — Years  of  hardship  and  trial  to  Mr.  Lincoln — ■ 
The  death  of  their  son — Grief  of  both  parents — Incidents  of  Mr.  Lincoln's 
love  for  his  children — Request  to  Commodore  Porter — Tad's  love  of  flowers 
— A  gratification  to  his  boy — At  Fortress  Monroe — Mr.  Lincoln  dreams  of 
Willie — Overcome  with  emotion — Reads  from  "  King  John  "  and  sobs  aloud 
— A  loving  father — A  relative's  opinion  of  him — Never  heard  to  utter  an  un- 
kind word — Mrs.  Lincoln  in  the  White  House — Much  alone — The  state  of 
the  country  preventing  gayety — At  the  watering  places — The  Presidential 
Canvass  of  1864 — Re-election  of  Mr.  Lincoln — The  New  Year's  recepfion 
in  1S65 — The  most  brilliant  reception  given — Thousands  present — The  war 
drawing  to  a  close — The  inaugnration — Anxiety  concerning  it — Safely  accom- 
plished— Joy  succeeds  sorrow — General  rejoicing  at  the  North — Surrender 
of  General  Lee — Peace  declared — The  White  House  thronged — Congratula- 
tions from  all  directions — Anniversary  of  the  fall  of  Fort  Sumter — The  Presi- 
dent and  family  at  the  theatre — The  greetings  of  a  great  audience — Those 
beside  him — In  a  private  box — Looking  pensive  and  sad — Shot — John 
Wilkes  Booth  the  assassin — Great  consternation — The  President  removed 
from  the  theatre — Mrs.  Lincoln  unnerved— At  her  husband's  death-bed — The 
return  to  the  White  House — Grief  of  the  nation — The  afternoon  before  his 
death — Out  riding — Mrs.  Lincoln's  reference  to  the  occasion — His  remarks 
to  his  wife  during  the  ride — They  go  alone  at  his  wish — His  touching  allusion 
to  their  son — "  We  have  been  very  miserable  " — A  miserable  household — 
Grief  of  little  Tad — Utterly  inconsolable — His  remarks  about  his  father — 
Mrs.  Lincoln  unnerved  by  the  shock — Never  wholly  recovers — 111  for  many 
■weeks — The  funeral  cortege  leaves  W'ashington — The  journey  to  Illinois — • 
Mourning  of  the  people — Impressive  scenes — The  eldest  son  accompanies 
the  cortege — Returns  to  his  mother's  side — Mrs.  Lincoln's  long  stay  in  the 
White  House  —  Embarrassed  officials  —  President's  Johnson's  considerate 
course — Final  departure  of  Mrs.  Lincoln — Death  of  Tad — Subseciuent  life 
of  Mrs.  Lincoln — In  ill-health — Travels  abroad — Petitions  Congress  fir  a 
pension — Restless  and  depressed  in  spirit — The  end  of  her  ambiticms,  hopes 
and  thoughts  of  home-life — Life  abroad — Return  to  America — Again  at 
Springfield 526 

ELIZA  McARDLE  JOHNSON.. 

The  only  child  of  a  widow — Married  at  seventeen — Her  husband  a  tailor's  ap- 
prentice— A  mountain  home — Well  instructed  in  ordinary  branches — ^A  very 


CONTENTS.  29 

beautiful  girl — The  wife  of  an  ambitious  man — His  widowed  mother's  chief 
support— An  additional  incentive  to  study — The  young  couple  learn  together 
— His  wife  teaches  him  to  write — She   reads  to  him  as  he  works — Three 
women — The  zeal  and  energy  of  one  of  them — The  tailor  boy's  incentives — 
Little  children  about  his  hearth— Mr.  Johnson  elected  alderman— The  joy  of 
a  good  wife — The  village  "Demosthenes" — Chosen  Mayor  of  Greenville — 
Three  terms  in  office — A  reputation  for  honest  deeds  and  correct  principles 
— Mrs.  Johnson's  devotion  to  her  husband's  interests — Death  of  their  mothers 
—Mr.  Johnson  a  member  of  the  Legislature  and    Governor  of  Tennessee — 
His  wife  remains  in  Greenville — Her  children's  education  her  care — Their 
Greenville  home — Andrew  Johnson's  first  home — His  old  shop — A  poor  man 
and  honest  official — Elected  Senator — Mrs.  Johnson  in  Washington— Failing 
health — Her  return  home — Separated  from  her  husband  for  two  years — The 
civil  war — Cut  off  from  news  of  home — Mrs.  Johnson  and  family  ordered  out 
of  East  Tennessee — Time  asked — Too  ill  to  travel — The  start  made — Ordered 
to  return — A  long  and  trying  journey — Passes  through  Confederate  lines — A 
night  sp'ent  on  the  cars — Without  food  or  beds  or  fire — A  tired  party — Mrs. 
Johnson  and  her  children  in  Nashville — The  heroic  conduct  of  the  former — 
Remembered  kindly  by  friend  and  foe — A  long-separated  family  reunited — 
Mrs.  Johnson  an  invalid — Death  of  her  eldest  son,  Dr.  Johnson — Governor 
Johnson,  Military  Governor  of  Tennessee — Nominated  for  the  Vice-Presi- 
dency— Goes  to  Washington — His  family  remain  in  Nashville — Preparing  to 
return  to  Greenville — The  assassination  of  the  President — Andrew  Johnson, 
President  of  the  United  States — Senator  Doolittle's  account  of  the  assassina- 
tion conspiracy — His  letters  to  the  Wisconsin  State  Historical  Society — Presi- 
dent  Johnson's   narrow    escape — Governor    Farwell's   presence  of  mind^ 
Leaves  the  theatre  to  find  Mr.  Johnson — Fears  for  liis  safety — Warns  the  hotel 
clerks — "  Guard  the  doors  :  the  President  is  assassinated" — Ruslies  to  the 
Vice-President's  room — His  anxiety  supreme — Is  reassured  by  hearing  Mr. 
Johnson's  voice — The  terrible  news  he  bears — A  moment  of  supreme  excite- 
ment— Hasty  plans  for  safety — The  moment  of  danger  passed — The  hotel 
guarded — Personal  friends  pouring  in  to  learn  his  fate — News  of  Secretary 
Seward's  condition — Thousands  of  people  in  the  streets — A  time  of  horror — 
The  President  dying — Mr.  Johnson  determined  to  see  him — His  refusal  to 
go  guarded — Accompanied  by  Major  O'Beirne  and  Governor  Farwell — At 
the  bedside  of  the  dying  President — Mrs.  Johnson  jiresented  with   an   album 
containing  Governor  Farwell's  account  of  the  conspiracy  plot — The  family  at 
the  White  House — Mrs.  Patterson  the  Lady  of  the  White  House — "A  plain 
people  from  the  mountains  of  Tennessee  " — Mrs.  Johnson  assumes  no  social 
duties — An  invalid — Only  once   in  the  East  Room — Her  household — The 
four  years  in   the  White   Tlouse — ITer  glad   return  to  Tennessee — Death  of 
Colonel  Robert  Johnson — Ex-President  Johnson  elected   Senator — His  wife 
greatly  pleased — Living  in  her  old  home — Illness  of  her  husband — His  death 
— Six  months  of  suffering — Her  death — Buried  beside  her  husband — A  superb 
aoocument r  54^ 


30  CONTENTS. 

MARTHA   JOHNSON   PATTERSON. 

Like  her  father  in  personal  appearance  and  character — A  strong,  earnest 
woman — Description  of  her  mental  characteristics — Her  executive  ability  and 
energy — The  pleasant  manners  of  the  President's  daughter — An  unoslenla- 
tious  person — A  dutiful  daughter  and  kind  sister — She  never  had  time  to 
play — A  busy  school-girl — Her  mother's  assistant — The  earnest  years  of  early 
life — At  school  in  Georgetown — A  guest  at  the  White  House — Mrs.  Polk's 
bashful  visitor — Many  of  her  holidays  spent  there — The  marriage  of  Miss 
Johnson  to  Judge  Patterson — A  visit  to  her  father  at  Nashville — lier  home  in 
East  Tennessee — The  mother  of  two  children — The  war — ^Joins  her  parents 
at  Nashville — Her  home  sacked— The  preparations  to  return  to  East  Tennes- 
see— News  of  the  assassination — Mrs.  Patterson  and  Mrs.  James  K.  Polk  oc- 
cupy a  carriage  in  the  procession  in  honor  of  Lincoln — Removal  to  Washing- 
ton— A  dismantled  mansion — The  East  Room  in  a  wretched  condition — A 
severe  task  before  the  new  mistress — President  Johnson's  first  reception — 
Mrs.  Patterson  and  Mrs.  Stover  beside  their  father — The  White  House  refur- 
nished— Mrs.  Patterson's  severe  duties — A  summer  spent  in  Washington  reno- 
vating the  home  of  the  Presidents — A  notable  housekeeper — Travels  with  her 
father — The  wife  of  a  Senator  and  daughter  of  the  President — President 
Jefferson's  second  daughter  similarly  situated,  l)ut  not  the  lady  of  the  White 
House — Golden  opinions  of  Mrs.  Patterson — Compared  to  Mrs.  John  Adams 
— Superior  common  sense  and  strong  will  power — A  Southerner's  love  of 
home — Her  conduct  during  the  impeachment  trial — A  patient  and  busy  per- 
son— The  strength  and  support  of  her  father — His  companion  and  counsellor 
— Devotion  to  his  interests — A  levee  at  the  White  House — ]\Irs.  Patterson's 
costume  described — The  farewell  reception — Five  thousand  people  present — ■ 
The  State  dinners  given  by  President  Johnson — The  last  entertainment  of 
this  kind — An  interesting  account  of  it — The  President's  hospitality — Retire 
ment  from  the  White  House — A  stormy  and  trying  ordeal  over— F;;rewells  to 
old  friends 573 

MARY    STOVER. 

The  second  daughter  of  President  Johnson — A  widow  when  she  went  to  Wash- 
ington— A  statuesque  blonde — Pier  children  with  her — The  grandchildren  of 
the  President — A  happy  home-circle — A  stately  woman  on  public  occasions — 
Her  inditierence  to  society — The  amusement  of  friends  at  her  manner  with 
strangers — A  shy  sufferer  in  society — Her  devotion  to  her  children — An  un- 
affected and  sensible  lady — A  pleasant  memory  in  Washington ergS 

JULIA   DENT  GRANT. 

The  inauguration  of  President  Grant  in  1869 — Youngest  man  who  has  occupied 
the  office — His  family — Mrs.  Ciranl  as  hostess,  wife  and  mother— Personal 
friends  and  relatives  about  her — Her  personal  influence — -A  Missourian  by 
birth — Her  father's  social  position — Her  brother  a  West  Point  graduate — 
Introduced  to  his  class-mate — The  engagement  of  the  young  lieutenant  and 


CONTENTS.  31 

Miss  Julia — The  m''*ch  not  pleasing  to  her  parents — The  yovinjr  officer 
ordered  to  frontier  duty — With  General  Taylor  in  Mexico — Saved  the  life  of 
Lieutenant  Dent — The  family  relent — An  engagement  of  five  years — Mar- 
ried in  1848 — A  merry  wedding — The  bride  at  her  husband's  post — House- 
keeping in  Detroit — A  vine-covered  cottage — The  children  of  this  union- 
Captain  Grant  leaves  the  army — Returns  to  Missouri — Poor  and  without 
prosjiects — Tries  farming — Not  successful  in  his  efforts — "  Hardscrabble  " — 
Enters  a  real-estate  office — Years  of  adversity — The  hope  and  trust  of  Mrs, 
Grant — A  visit  to  his  father — What  came  of  it — In  business  at  Galena — Six 
hundred  a  year — "  Hardscrabble"  still — His  wife  maid  of  all  work,  nurse 
and  teacher  of  her  children — An  uncongenial  business — Hard  work  and  little 
reward — His  position  disagreeable  on  various  accounts — The  outbreak  of  the 
war — The  turning-point  in  his  life — Appointed  Captain — Speedy  promotions 
— Governor  Washburne  his  friend — Is  made  a  Brigadier-Cieneral — Mrs. 
Grant  and  her  children  in  Kentucky — His  father's  house  her  home — Her 
loyal  devotion  to  her  husband — Predicts  higher  distinction  for  him — His  de- 
fender always — Much  of  his  success  due  to  her  recognition  of  his  character — • 
With  him  at  Fort  Donelson  and  in  Mississippi — Serenaded  in  St.  Louis  after 
the  surrender  of  Vicksburg — Her  appearance  greeted  with  cheers — Shares 
with  her  husband  his  milit.iry  renown  —  At  head-quarters — Mrs.  Grant's  opin- 
ion of  lier  husband — "A  very  obstinate  man  " — He  becomes  Lieutenanl-Gen- 
eral — Resides  in  Washington  City — Three  years  of  home-life  under  pleasant 
circumstances — The  most  successful  General  of  the  age — Is  nominated  for  the 
Presidency — Inauguration  of  President  Grant — Mrs.  Grant  in  the  White 
House — The  domestic  life  of  the  President's  family — Three  years  of  the  ad- 
ministration— At  Long  Branch  in  summer — Debut  of  Miss  Nellie — Her  four 
in  Europe — Distinguished  attentions  shown  her — Tlieir  sons  at  home  from 
school — Marriage  of  Nellie  Grant — The  lover  from  overihe  water — National 
interest  in  the  event — The  sixth  wedding  in  the  White  House — The  cere- 
mony in  the  East  Room — The  groom  Algernon  Sartoris,  of  Hampshire,  Eng- 
land— Tiie  son  of  .\delaide  Kemble,  and  grandson  of  Charles  Kemble — His 
aunt  the  famous  actress  Fanny  Kemble — An  exceptionally  brilliant  life- 
President  Grant's  pride  in  his  daughter — Her  wedding  the  finest  ever  known 
in  Washington — Guests  present — Departure  for  Europe — The  President  and 
Mrs.  Grant  at  Long  Branch — Colonel  Fred  Grant's  marriage — Mrs.  Grant's 
social  administration — Elaborate  entertainments — Notable  social  events — 
Royal  visitors  at  the  White  House — Eight  years  in  the  Executive  Mansion- 
Close  of  the  administration  of  President  Grant — The  recipient  of  constant  at- 
tentions— Guests  of  the  ex-Secretary  of  State — Preparations  for  a  tour  around 
the  world — The  guest  of  George  Washington  Childs,  Esq.,  in  Philadelphia — 
Honors  paid  to  the  ex- President — The  last  week  made  memorcjble — Depar- 
ture from  Philadelphia — The  trip  down  the  Delaware — Entliusiasm  of  the 
people — The  farewell  to  friends — Parting  salute — The  steamer  "  Indiana" 
departs — Welcomed  on  English  soil — The  journey  around  the  world — Two 
years  and  a-half  of  sight-seeing — The  return  to  the  United  States — In  sight  of 
home— Arrival  at  San  Francisco— Universal  rejoicings — Invitations  from  all 


32  CONTENTS. 

the  large  cities  of  the  Union — The  ex-President  surprised  at  the  heartiness  of 
his  reception — Pleasant  incidents — A  present  to  Mrs.  Grant  from  the  Chinese 
delegation — The  dinner  given  her  in  China — Guest  of  the  wife  of  the  Viceroy 
of  China — John  Russell  Young's  description  of  ihe  entertainment — She  is  ac- 
companied by  the  European  ladies  in  Tientsin — "  Whal  shall  we  wear?" — 
They  decide  in  favor  of  French  fashions — The  procession  of  chairs  to  the 
Yamen — Mrs.  Grant  in  the  first  chair — An  American  and  a  Chinese  band — 
The  refinement  of  the  hostess — The  Viceregal  family — Costumes  of  the  Chi- 
nese ladies — Crowds  of  servants  in  attendance — Tea  served  in  the  library — 
At  dinner — The  dining-roona  and  table  furnishing — A  Chinese  and  European 
feast — The  fortitude  of  the  guests — Chopsticks  handled  with  dexterity — The 
civility  of  tlie  hostess — Democratic  customs  in  China — The  crowd  about  the 
windows  and  doors — The  toast  of  the  hostess — Barbarian  ladies  surprise  her 
— The  Viceroy  looking  on — Anxious  for  the  success  of  the  entertainment— 
— The  singing  and  dancing  of  the  guests — Barbarian  customs  approved  by 
the  Oriental  ladies — German  music  in  the  Viceroy's  palace — Migh-bred  cour- 
tesy of  the  hostess — Stands  or  sits  as  lier  guests  do — A  refined  lady — Accom- 
panied Mrs.  Grant  to  her  chair — The  adieux — Mrs.  Grant  travels — Has  re- 
ceived at  the  hands  of  foreigners  more  attention  than  any  other  White  House 
occupant — The  guest  of  the  crown  heads  of  Europe — Her  chief  pleasure  in 
life — Popular  in  society — Untrammelled  with  cares — The  molivcs  governing 
her  public  career — Domesticity  her  leading  characteristic — An  excellent 
mother — Adored  by  her  children — Identified  with  her  husband's  public 
career — Her  name  a  theme  of  praise — The  summer  of  her  life — The  future 
that  yet  awaits  her 603 

LUCY  "WEBB  HAYES. 

Widely  popular — An  element  in  the  Administration — Her  influence  admirable 
— The  representative  of  the  third  period  of  White  House  ladies — The  women 
of  the  Revolution — Their  successors — The  second  century  of  the  Republic — 
Mrs.  Hayes  a  representative  of  it — Her  qualifications  and  ambition — An  ideal 
wife — Happy  married  life — Long  experience  in  semi-official  life — Her  grace, 
culture  and  social  attributes — Pleasant  duties  well  perfom'jed — Has  created  a 
higher  reverence  for  her  sex — As  corapai-ed  with  others  of  her  rank — What 
men  have  learned  from  the  days  of  Socrates  to  President  Hayes — The  domes- 
tic lives  of  great  men — The  glory  of  life  realized — Mrs.  Hayes'  birth-place- 
Daughter  of  Dr.  James  Webb — Ancestry — The  mother  of  Mrs.  Hayes — A 
noble  woman^— Her  careful  training  of  her  children — Pupils  at  Wc-;ieyan 
University — Cottage  home  of  Mrs.  Webb — Lucy  a  fellow-student  with  her 
brothers — Sent  to  the  Wesleyan  Female  College — Excellent  school  advantages 
— A  graduate  of  the  first  chartered  college  for  young  women  in  the  United 
States — Is  introduced  to  a  promising  young  lawyer — His  interest  in  the  under- 
graduate— What  he  wrote  concerning  her — Pleasant  school-memories  of  Mrs. 

■  Hayes — Her  schoolmates'  opinion  of  her — "Absolutely  will  not  talk  gossip" 
• — The  trait  a  gift  from  her  mother — An  exemplification  of  the  Golden  Rule 
—A  member  of  the  church — A  clever  student — At  the  head  of  her  class— 


CONTENTS.  33 

School-life  clo'^ed — Married  to  Mr.  Hayes — The  wedding — A  marriage 
crowned  with  affection — "All  the  world  loves  a  lover  " — Sensitive  apprecia 
tion  of  what  is  due  her  husband's  fame  from  her — An  incident — Mrs.  Hayes 
a  strong,  self-respecting  woman — A  minister's  tribute  to  her  temperance  views 
— Ranks  her  with  the  Marys  who  stood  at  the  cross — President  Hayes — A 
widow's  son — His  mother — \  self-reliant  woman — Devotion  to  her  children 
■ — Mr.  Hayes  a  graduate  of  Kenyon  College,  and  of  the  Cambridge  Law 
School — Practises  law  in  Fremont — Removal  to  Cincinnati — Offices  held  by 
him — Enters  the  army  as  Major — Distinctions  won  during  the  war — At  the 
battle  of  South  Mountain — Wounded  in  four  engagements — An  instance  of 
her  life  in  camp — "A  woman  who  mends  the  boys'  clothes" — A  kind  deed 
to  a  soldier — Mrs.  Hayes  searching  the  Washington  hospitals — Fails  to  get 
tidings  of  him — Finds  him  at  Middletown,  Maryland — Her  brother  with  him 
— Establishes  herself  as  nurse — In  the  family  of  Captain  Rudy — Their  opin- 
ion of  Mrs.  Hayes — Her  easy,  affable  ways — Visits  the  hospitals  and  nurses 
the  soldiers — A  welcome  presence  in  the  sick-room — Returns  to  Cincinnati 
with  her  husband — Her  departure  sincerely  regretted — Attentions  to  Miss 
Rudy — A  guest  in  the  Governor's  house — President  Hayes'  letter  on  the  death 
of  Captain  Rudy — The  close  of  the  war — General  Hayes  elected  to  Congress 
— Re-elected — Nominated  Governor  of  Ohio — Re-elected — The  Executive 
Mansion  at  Columbus — Social  life  there — Elegant  hospitality  extended — Mrs, 
Hayes'  public  duties — Works  to  enlarge  the  State  Charities — Identified  with 
all  good  causes — Her  wide  influence — The  mother  of  eight  children — An 
excellent  mother — Admirable  in  all  the  relationships  of  life — Summers  spent 
at  Fremont — "Spiegel  Grove" — A  hospitable  mansion — Description  of  the 
house  and  surroundings — Burchard  Park — Pen-portrait  of  Mrs.  Hayes — Me- 
dium height  and  well  built — Fine  eyes  and  expressive  features — An  animated 
face — Excellent  health  and  sunny  nature — A  splendid  specimen  of  physical 
womanhood — The  Presidential  canvass  in  1876 — An  excitjng  event — A  season 
of  great  anxiety — President  and  Mrs.  Hayes  in  Washington — The  guests  of 
Mr.  Sherman — The  inauguration — Scene  in  the  Senate  Chamber — The  happy 
face  in  the  gallery — A  bright  glance  that  reassured  the  principal  actor — At  the 
White  House — The  two  Presidents  at  lunch — Ex-President  and  Mrs.  Grant 
leave  the  White  House — The  farewells  at  the  door — The  new  life  begun — 
Arrival  of  the  children  and  guests — First  day  in  the  White  House — Mrs. 
Hayes  delighted  with  her  position — Her  admissions  on  this  subject — Antici- 
pates enjoyment — A  pleasant  incident — Class  testimonial  to  Mrs.  Hayes — The 
college  badge — The  device  made  in  flowers — The  note  accompanying  the 
gift — "  The  best  plans  will  go  nglee  " — The  note  lost — Mrs.  Hayes  in  a  quiver 
of  excitement — How  she  learned  the  names  of  the  donors — The  end  felicitous 
— The  ladies  invited  to  the  White  House — A  happy  occasion — Mrs.  Hayes' 
Bibles — Enough  to  stock  a  hotel — The  first  reception — The  most  gratified 
lady  in  the  land — A  ridiant  face — The  effect  as  she  received — Her  toilette — 
A  simple,  elegant  dress — Rare  laces — The  second  entertainment — Dinner  to 
the  Grand  Dukes  Alexis  and  Constantine  of  Russia — A  brilliant  gathering— 
The  drawing-rooms — Flowers  and  Sevres  china— The  table-and  dining-room 


34  CONTENTS. 

ornaments — The  grand  promenade — The  Grand  Duke  Alexis  and  Mrs.  Hayes 
— President  Hayes  and  Lady  Thornton — Other  members  of  the  brilliant  com- 
pany— The  toilette  worn  by  Mrs.  Hayes — The  facts  about  the  use  of  wine  on 
this  occasion — Not- seen  on  subsequent  occasions — A  compliment  for  Mrs, 
Hayes  from  Paris — Her  first  Sunday  in  Washington — Attends  the  Foundry 
Methodist  Church — Mrs.  Hayes  dots  not  interfere  in  official  matters — Con- 
siders no  applications  for  appointments — A  notable  instance  of  her  deviation 
from  this  rule — A  temperance  postmistress  retained — The  reason  for  her  in- 
terference— Mrs.  Hayes'  attentions  to  her  "  poor  relations  " — Democratic  in- 
dependence— An  instance  of  it — The  best  carriage  and  liveried  servants — 
Plain  people  from  Ohio — A  few  frills  put  on  fur  their  sakes — The  household 
at  the  While  House — The  children  of  the  President — What  an  old  school* 
friend  said  of  Mrs.  Hayes — Mrs.  Mary  Clemmer  writes  of  her — The  eyes 
of  a  Madonna — A  woman  of  the  hearth  and  home — Strong  as  fair — 
"  Holding  the  white  lamp  of  her  womanhood  unshaken " — The  finest- 
looking  type  of  man  and  woman — A  Southerner's  opinion — "A  God  beautiful 
woman  " — President  Hayes — Description  of  personal  appearance — Manly, 
refined  and  polished  in  manners — Silver  wedding — First  ever  celebrated  in 
the  White  House — Rev.  Dr.  McCabe  renews  his  pastora.  blessing — The  wed- 
ding dress  of  the  bride — Friends  present — Interesting  event — The  children 
who  were  christened — The  family  dinner — Formal  reception  next  evening 
The  Executive  Mansion  brilliant  with  flowers  and  gay  costumes — Dress  worn 
by  Mrs.  Hayes — Wedding  dress  too  small — Her  guests — Those  who  attended 
the  first  wedding — The  only  present  received — A  gift  to  Mrs.  Hayes — In 
memory  of  past  kindness — From  the  officers  of  the  23d  Ohio  Volunteer  In- 
fantry— A  silver  plate  in  an  ebony  frame — The  inscription — The  log-hut  and 
torn  battle  flags — Scenes  in  the  Kanawha  Valley  in  1S63-64 — The  banquet — 
All  the  magnificent  White  House  tableware  in  use — Superb  flowers — A  bless- 
ing asked — Telegrams  offering  congratulations — One  of  the  pleasant  affairs 
connected  with  the  administration — The  two  notable  features  it  exhibited — 
The  cards  pf  invitation  and  the  present — Mrs.  Hayes'  friendly  interest  in  the 
soldiers — "The  mother  of  the  Regiment" — The  White  House  during  Mrs. 
Hayes'  administration — Her  entertainments  public  and  private — Marriage 
of  Miss  Plait  in  the  White  House — Many  bridal  parties  there — A  lunch  party 
to  young  ladies — Mrs.  Hayes'  tours  with  her  husband — Never  tired  of  having 
a  good  time — The  most  idolized  woman  in  America — Uses  the  world  without 
abusing  it — An  honor  to  women — Presentation  of  her  portrait  to  the  nation 
< — Description  of  picture  and  frame — Farewell  to  Washington — Welcome 
home 628 

LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

Self-control — Her  characteristics — Before  her  marriage — General  Garfield'* 
early  life — Elected  to  the  Senate — Death  of  a  child — Letter  to  her  husband— 
Her  husband's  tribute — The  family  at  Mentor — Description  of  her  home- 
Mrs.  Garfield  at  home — Personal  appe^.rance — "  Mother  Garfield" — A  scene 


CONTENTS.  35 

at  the  inauguration — The  President's  family  at  Washington — Early  life  of 
Mother  Garfield — Mother  and  son — Inauguration  scenes — A  brilliant  scene 
— The  inauguration  ball — The  ladies  of  the  Cabinet — The  children  of  the 
President — Mrs.  Garfield's  illness — At  I-ong  Branch — Saturday,  July  2d, 
"  The  President  shot " — Incidents  of  the  assassination — Removal  to  the  White 
House — Heroic  suffering — Letter  to  Mother  Garfield — Not  a  politician — 
Sympathy  of  the  people — The  relapse — Removal  to  Long  Branch — A  little 
lioy's  sympathy — Anxious  waiting — Died  September  19th,  1881 — The  death- 
bed scene — Alone  with  her  dead — Mother  Garfield — Leaving  Elberon — 
Tributes  by  the  way — The  last  look — The  Queen's  floral  tribute — The  start  for 
Cleveland — Scenes  by  the  way — At  Cleveland — The  funeral  procession — At 
the  cemetery — The  last  scene — The  Queen's  sympathy 665 

"THE   WHITE   HOUSE." 

Corner-stone    laid — How    constructed — Where    situated — Trees    planted    bjr 
John  Quincy  Adams — Green  House — Why  so-called 731 


a>.|?-"bs'  J.C3attre . 


'Y^f.  p>      "^P^ .tN^K  "  5^ ©7®!??  , 


THE 

Ladies  of  the  White  House. 


MARTHA  WASHINGTON. 

The  first  who,  in  our  young  republic,  bore  the  honors 
as  a  President's  wife,  is  described  "as  being  rather 
below  the  middle  size,  but  extremely  well-shaped,  with 
an  agreeable  countenance,  dark  hazel  eyes  and  hair, 
and  those  frank,  engaging  manners  so  captivating  in 
American  women.  She  was  not  a  beauty,  but  gentle 
and  winning  in  her  nature,  and  eminently  congenial  to 
her  illustrious  husband.  During  their  long  and  happy 
married  life,  he  ever  wore  her  likeness  on  his  heart." 

"It  was  in  1758  that  an  officer,  attired  in  a  military 
undress,  attended  by  a  body-servant  tall  and  militaire  as 
his  chief,  crossed  the  ferry  over  the  Pamunkey,  a  branch 
of  the  York  River.  On  the  boat's  touching  the  south- 
ern or  New  Kent  side,  the  soldier's  progress  was 
arrested  by  one  of  those  personages  who  give  the  beau- 
ideal  of  the  Virgfinia  crentleman  of  the  old  regime ;  the 
very  soul  of  kindliness  and  hospitality.  It  was  in  vain 
the  soldier  urged  his  business  at  Williamsburg;  im- 
portant  communications    to    the    Governor,    etc.      Mr. 

(39) 


40  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

Chamberlayne,  on  whose  domain  the  officer  had  just 
landed,  would  hear  no  excuse.  Colonel  Washington 
was  a  name  and  character  so  dear  to  all  Virginians,  that 
his  passing  by  one  of  the  old  estates  of  Virginia  without 
calling  and  partaking  of  the  hospitalities  of  the  host  was 
entirely  out  of  the  question.  The  Colonel,  however,  did 
not  surrender  at  discretion,  but  stoutly  maintained  his 
ground,  till  Chamberlayne  brought  up  his  reserve  in  the 
intimation  that  he  would  introduce  his  friend  to  a  young 
and  charming  widow  then  beneath  his  roof.  The  sol- 
dier capitulated  on  condition  that  he  should  dine,  only 
dine,  and  then,  by  pressing  his  charger,  and  borrowing 
of  the  night,  he  would  reach  Williamsburg  before  his 
Excellency  could  shake  off  his  morning  slumbers. 
Orders  were  accordingly  issued  to  Bishop,  the  Colonel's 
body-servant  and  faithful  follower,  who,  together  with  a 
fine  English  charger,  had  been  bequeathed  by  the  dying 
Braddock  to  Major  Washington  on  the  famed  and  fated 
field  of  the  Monongahela.  Bishop,  bred  in  the  school 
of  European  discipline,  raised  his  hand  to  his  cap,  as 
much  as  to  say,  'Your  honor's  orders  shall  be  obeyed.' 
The  Colonel  now  proceeded  to  the  mansion,  and  was 
introduced  to  various  guests  (for  when  was  a  Virginia 
domicil  of  the  olden  time  without  guests?),  and,  above 
all,  to  the  charming  widow.  Tradition  relates  that  they 
were  mutually  pleased  on  tliis  their  first  interview,  nor 
is  it  remarkable;  they  were  of  an  age  when  impressions 
are  strongest.  The  lady  was  fair  to  behold,  of  fasci- 
natino-  manners,  and  splendidly  endowed  with  woiridly. 


WASHINGTON,  THE    LOVER.  41 

benefits;  the  hero,  fresh   from  his   early  fields  redolent 
of  fame,  and  with  a  form  on  which  'every  god  did  seem 
to  set  his  seal,  to  give  the  world  assurance  of  a  man.' 
The   morning  passed   pleasantly  away;  evening  came, 
with   Bishop,  true  to   his   orders  and   firm  at  his  post, 
holding  the   favorite   charger  with   the  one  hand,  while 
the  other  was  waiting  to  offer  the   ready  stirrup.     The 
sun  sank  in  the  horizon,  and  yet  the  Colonel  appeared 
not,  and  then   the  old  soldier  wondered  at  his   chief's 
delay.     'Twas  strange;  'twas  passing  strange.     Surely 
he   was   not   wont   to   be  a   single   moment   behind   his 
appointments,  for  he  was  the  most  punctual  of  all  punc- 
tual men.      Meantime,  the  host  enjoyed  the  scene  of  the 
veteran  on  duty  at  the  gate,  while  the  Colonel  was  so 
agreeably  employed  in  the  parlor;  and  proclaiming  that 
no  guest  ever  left  his  hoiise  after  sunset,  his  military 
visitor  was,  without  much  difficulty,  persuaded  to  order 
Bishop  to  put  up  the  horses   for  the   night.     The  sun 
rode  high   in   the   heavens   the   ensuing  day  when  the 
enamored  soldier  pressed  with  his   spur  his  charger's 
sides  and  sped  on  his  way  to   the   seat  of  government, 
when,  having  despatched  his  public  business,  he  retraced 
his  steps,  and  at  her  country-seat,  the  White  House,  after 
which  the  home  of  the  Presidents  was  called,  the  engage- 
ment took  place,  with  arrangements  for  the  marriage." 

It  is  pleasant  to  remember  that,  with  all  the  privations 
and  hardships  endured  by  both  in  after-years,  they  never 
encountered  poverty.  When  Colonel  Washington  mar- 
ried Mrs.  Custis,  the  ceremony  was  performed  under 


42  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

the  roof  of  her  own  home,  and  the  broad  lands  about  it 
were  but  a  part  of  her  large  estate.  Immediately  after 
their  wedding,  which  has  been  described  repeatedly  as  a 
most  joyous  and  happy  affair,  in  which  every  belle  and 
beau  for  miles  around  took  part,  they  repaired  at  once 
to  Mount  Vernon.  Here  for  seventeen  brigrht  and 
beautiful  years  they  enjoyed  the  society  of  relatives 
and  friends,  and  the  constant  companionship  of  each 
other.  During  those  years  of  prosperity,  Mrs.  Wash- 
ington had  ample  opportunity  to  manifest  that  ele- 
gance of  manner  for  which  she  was  remarkable.  In 
her  girlhood,  as  Miss  Dandridge,  she  had  enjoyed 
the  best  society  of  Williamsburg,  and  during  Gov- 
ernor Dinwiddle's  residence  there,  she  had  been  one  of 
the  most  popular  and  admired  of  the  many  bloom- 
ine  Sfirls  who  had  rendered  the  court  of  the  Governor 
attractive. 

Nothinof  remains  to  us  of  her  childhood  save  an  in- 
distinct  tradition;'-'  perhaps  her  infant  years  were  spent 
at  her  father's  country  home,  unmarked  but  by  the 
gradual  change  of  the  little  one  into  the  shy  young  lady. 
That  she  was  educated  after  the  exigency  of  her  time,  at 
home,  is  likewise  a  truth  gathered  from  the  echoes  of  the 
past  generation.  Virginia  in  those  early  days — for  she 
was  born  in  May,  1732 — possessed  no  educational  facili- 
ties, and  the  children  of  the  wealthy  were  either  sent 
abroad  for  accomplishments  unattainable  in  their  native 

*  She  was  a  descendant  of  the  Rev.  Orlando  Jones,  a  clergyman  of  Wales. 


y^    lfc.//x.o^^/i^ 


MARRIED    TO    COLONEL    CUSTIS.  43 

land,  or  put  under  die  care  of  tutor  or  governess  at 
home.  Such  knowledge  as  she  possessed  of  the  world 
was  gleaned  from  the  few  books  she  read,  and  the 
society  of  her  father's  friends,  for  she  had  never  been 
farther  from  home  than  Williamsburg. 

She  is  first  mentioned  as  a  rustic  beauty  and  belle  at 
the  British  Governor's  residence,  and  was  there  mar- 
ried, when  very  young,  to  Colonel  Custis.  After  her 
marriaofe  her  home  was  not  far  distant  from  her  father's 
plantation,  and  these  fleeting  years  were  so  fraught  with 
every  conceivable  blessing  that  her  young  heart  asked 
no  other  boon.  Endeared  to  each  other  by  the  warm- 
est affection,  her  time  spent  in  dispensing  that  hos- 
pitality which  was  deemed  a  duty  and  a  virtue,  it 
seemed  as  if  no  trouble  could  ever  mar  her  happiness. 
Colonel  Custis  was  a  gifted  and  refined  man,  of  emi- 
nently polished  and  agreeable  manners,  and  the  pos- 
sessor of  a  generous  nature,  which  rendered  him 
widely  popular.  The  congenial  couple  lived  in  happy 
contentment  in  the  enjoyment  of  their  own  and  their 
children's  society,  surrounded  by  friends,  and  the  pos- 
sessors of  all  those  creature  comforts  which  add  so 
essentially  to  the  pleasures  of  existence.  They  had 
three  children,  the  eldest  of  whom  was  a  son,  unusually 
endowed  with  mental  gifts,  and  giving  promise  of  a 
bright  future.  His  health  was  not  good,  and  though 
watched  over  with  continuous  care  and  forethoujzht  he 
died,  and  his  untimely  death  hastened  the  disease 
already  manifest  in  his  father's  system.     Colonel  Custis 


44  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

died  of  consumption  a  short  time  afterward,  and  thus 
was  the  wife  and  mother  deprived  of  her  companion, 
whose  affection  was  in  keeping  with  his  many  virtues  and 
elevated  mind,  and  the  boy  whose  existence  had  first 
called  into  being  all  the  deathless  love  of  a  mother. 

Time  soothed  the  wounds  naught  else  could  heal,  and 
the  young  widow  discharged  the  duties  that  belonged  to 
her  position.  The  trust  her  husband  reposed  in  her — 
in  leaving  their  large  property  in  her  own  hands  to 
control — she  amply  vindicated,  and  her  estate  was  one 
of  the  best  managed  in  the  county.  When  she  met 
Colonel  Washington  she  was  twenty-six  years  of  age, 
and  was  remarkably  youthful  in  appearance  and  very 
handsome.  She  had  ever  been  the  object  of  warm  and 
disinterested  affection,  and  from  her  first  entrance  into 
the  society  of  Williamsburg,  down  to  the  last  hour  of 
her  life,  it  was  eminently  illustrated.  Few  had  been 
her  sorrows,  and  for  each  and  every  one  endured  she 
could  count  a  twofold  blessing.  There  was  nothing  in 
her  life  to  foster  the  faults  incident  to  human  nature, 
for  the  rank  weeds  of  poverty  and  lack  of  opportunity, 
which  cramp  and  deform  so  many  earth-lives,  were  un- 
felt  and  unknown  to  her. 

Mount  Vernon  was  the  gift  to  Colonel  Washington 
from  his  elder  and  bachelor  brother  Lawrence,  and  the 
estate  was  then  one  of  the  finest  in  Virginia.  Wash- 
inorton  had  made  it  his  occasional  residence  before  his 
marriage,  but  it  was  not  until  he  took  his  bride  there 
that  it  became  his  permanent  home.     The  life  that  Mrs. 


AT    MOUNT    VLRNON.  45 

Washington  led  there  was  similar  in  outward  circum- 
stances to  her  former  position  as  Mrs.  Custis,  for  she 
was  again  the  wife  of  a  wealthy,  prosperous  planter,  the 
centre  of  the  refined  society  of  the  county.  The  same- 
ness of  country  life  was  interrupted  by  her  frequent 
trips  with  her  husband  to  Williamsburg,  where  he  was 
for  fifteen  successive  years  a  member  of  the  Legis- 
lature. 

"How  noiseless  falls  the  foot  of  time 
Thai  only  treads  on  flowers!  " 

Engaged  in  fascinating  pleasures  and  congenial  pur- 
suits, it  did  not  occur  to  Mrs.  Washington  how  many 
summers  of  fragrandy  blooming  flowers  and  ripening 
fruits  had  sunk  into  the  unreturning  past;  nor  did  she 
consider  that  the  long  term  of  years  in  which  she  had 
been  so  happy  had  meted  to  others  measured  drops  of 
bitterness,  turnincr  all  their  harvest-times  into  chilline, 
dreary  winter.  There  came  to  her  a  time  when  the 
pleasant  home-life  had  to  be  abandoned,  and  for  eight 
years  the  harmony  of  domestic  peace  was  banished. 

The  following  letter,  the  only  one  preserved  of  the 
many  addressed  to  her,  is  full  of  interest,  and  is  replete 
with  that  thoucrhtfulness  which  characterized  Washineton 
in  his  capacity  as  a  husband.  Mrs.  Washington,  shortly 
before  her  death,  destroyed  every  testimonial  of  this 
kind,  unwilling  that  any  other  should  read  these  evi- 
dences of  affection: 

"Philadelphia,  i%th  Jtate,  1775. 

"  My  Dearest:  I  am  now  set  down  to  write  to  you  on 


46  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

a  subject  which  fills  me  with  inexpressible  concern,  and 
this  concern  is  greatly  aggravated  and  increased  when  I 
reflect  upon  the  uneasiness  I  know  it  will  give  you.  It 
has  been  determined  in  Congress  that  the  whole  army 
raised  for  the  defence  of  the  American  cause  shall  be 
put  under  my  care,  and  that  it  is  necessary  for  me  to 
proceed  immediately  to  Boston  to  take  upon  me  the 
command  of  it. 

"You  may  believe  me,  my  dear  Patsy,  when  I  assure 
you,  in  the  most  solemn  manner,  that,  so  far  from  seek- 
ing this  appointment,  I  have  used  every  endeavor  in  my 
power  to  avoid  it,  not  only  from  my  unwillingness  to 
part  with  you  and  the  family,  but  from  a  consciousness 
of  its  being  a  trust  too  great  for  my  capacity,  and  that 
I  should  enjoy  more  real  happiness  in  one  month  with 
you  at  home,  than  I  have  the  most  distant  prospects  of 
finding  abroad  if  my  stay  were  to  be  seven  times  seven 
years.  But  as  it  has  been  a  kind  of  destiny  tliat  has 
thrown  me  upon  this  service,  I  shall  hope  that  my  under- 
taking it  is  designed  to  answer  some  good  purpose. 
You  might,  and  I  suppose  did,  perceive,  from  the  tenor 
of  my  letter,  that  I  was  apprehensive  I  could  not  avoid 
this  appointment,  as  I  did  not  pretend  to  intimate  when 
I  should  return.  That  was  the  case.  It  was  utterly  out 
of  my  power  to  refuse  this  appointment,  without  exposing 
my  character  to  such  censures  as  would  have  reflected 
dishonor  upon  myself,  and  given  pain  to  my  friends. 
This,  1  am  sure,  could  not  and  ought  not  to  be  pleasing 
to  you,  and  must  have  lessened  me  considerably  in  my 


THE    AFFECTION    OF    WASHINGTON.  47 

own  esteem,  I  shall  rely,  therefore,  confidently  on  that 
Providence  which  has  heretofore  preserved  and  been 
bountiful  to  me,  not  doubting  but  that  I  shall  return  safe 
to  you  in  the  fall.  I  shall  feel  no  pain  from  the  toil  or 
danger  of  the  campaign ;  my  unhappiness  will  flow  from 
the  uneasiness  I  know  you  will  feel  from  being  left  alone. 
I  therefore  beg  that  you  will  summon  your  whole  forti- 
tude, and  pass  your  time  as  agreeably  as  possible. 
Nothing  else  will  give  me  so  much  sincere  satisfaction 
as  to  hear  this,  and  to  hear  it  from  your  own  pen.  My 
earnest  and  ardent  desire  is,  that  you  would  pursue  any 
plan  that  is  most  likely  to  produce  content  and  a  toler- 
able degree  of  tranquillity,  as  it  must  add  greatly  to  my 
uneasy  feelings  to  hear  that  you  are  dissatisfied  or  com. 
plaining  at  what  I  really  could  not  avoid, 

"As  life  is  always  uncertain,  and  common  prudence 
dictates  to  every  man  the  necessity  of  settling  his  tem- 
poral concerns  while  it  is  in  his  power,  I  have,  since  I 
came  to  this  place — for  I  had  no  time  to  do  it  before  1 
left  home — got  Colonel  Pendleton  to  draft  a  will  for  me 
by  the  directions  I  gave  him,  which  I  will  now  enclose. 
The  provisions  made  for  you,  in  case  of  my  death,  will,  I 
hope,  be  agreeable.  I  shall  add  nothing  more,  as  I  have 
several  letters  to  write,  but  to  desire  that  you  will  re- 
member me  to  your  friends,  and  to  assure  you  that  I  am, 
with  the  most  unfeigned  regard,  my  dear  Patsy, 

"Your  affectionate  George  Washington." 

This  trial  of  separation  was  mitigated,  although  often 


48  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

prolonged  to  weary  months.  Ever  when  the  long  Indian 
summer  days  of  October  shed  glory  over  the  burnished 
forest  trees,  her  cumbrous  carnage  with  its  heavy  hang- 
ings and  massive  springs,  suggestive  of  comfort,  was 
brought  to  the  door  and  laden  with  all  the  appurtenances 
of  a  winter's  visit.  Year  after  year,  as  she  had  ordered 
supplies  for  this  annual  trip  to  her  husband's  camp,  she 
trusted  it  would  be  the  last ;  and  each  time  as  the  ser- 
vants cooked  and  packed  for  this  too  oft-repeated  ab- 
sence, they  wished  it  might  hurry  him  home,  to  remember 
how  many  were  needing  his  presence  there.  The  bat- 
tles were  fierce  and  the  struggles  long,  and  if  the  orderly 
matron  disliked  the  necessity  of  leaving  home  so  often 
and  for  so  long  a  time,  her  heart  was  glad  of  the  sacri- 
fice when  she  reached  the  doubly  anxious  husband  who 
was  watching  and  waiting  for  her — anxious  for  his  wife, 
somewhere  on  the.  road,  and  for  his  bleeding  country, 
struggling  unavailingly  for  the  eternal  principles  of  free- 
dom. It  was  her  presence  that  gave  comfort  to  the  oft- 
times  dispirited  commander,  and  sent  a  gleam  of  sun- 
shine to  the  hearts  of  the  officers,  who  saw  in  her  coming 
the  harbinger  of  their  own  happiness.  For  it  was  an 
established  custom,  for  all  who  could,  to  send  for  their 
families  after  the  commander  had  received  and  welcomed 
his.  General  Washington,  after  her  annual  trip,  invari- 
ably wrote  to  persons  who  had  been  attentive  and  oblig- 
ing, and  punctually  thanked  every  one  who  had  in  any 
way  conduced  to  her  comfort  during  her  tedious  stages 
from  Mount  Vernon.    Never  but  once  or  twice  had  those 


INSULTED    BY    THE    LADIES    OF   PHILADELPIHA.  49 

yearly  moves  been  disagreeable,  and  diough  universally 
unoffending,  she  felt  die  painful  effects  of  party  bitter- 
ness ;  but  the  noble  intrepidity  of  General  Washington 
relieved  the  depressing  influences  of  such  unusual  occur- 
rences. Her  own  pride  suffered  nothing  in  comparison 
to  the  natural  sensitiveness  she  felt  for  her  husband's 
fair  fame,  and  the  coldness  on  the  part  of  others  affected 
only  as  it  reflected  on  her  noble  protector.  Once,  after 
a  disastrous  campaign,  as  she  was  passing  through  Phila- 
delphia, she  was  insulted  by  the  ladies  there,  who  declined 
nodcing  her  by  any  civilities  whatever.  The  tide  in  the 
affairs  of  men  came,  and,  alas  for  human  nature!  man) 
of  these  haughty  matrons  were  the  first  to  welcome  her 
there  as  the  wife  of  the  President. 

Mrs.  Washington  was  unostentatious  in  her  dress, 
and  displayed  little  taste  for  those  luxurious  ornaments 
deemed  appropriate  for  the  wealthy  and  great.  In  her 
own  home  the  spinning  wheels  and  looms  were  kept 
constantly  going,  and  her  dresses  were,  many  times, 
woven  by  her  servants.  General  Washington  wore  at 
his  inaucru ration,  a  full  suit  of  fine  cloth,  the  handiwork  of 
his  own  household.  At  a  ball  given  in  New  Jersey  in 
honor  to  herself,  she  wore  a  "simple  russet  gown,"  and 
white  handkerchief  about  her  neck,  thereby  setting  an 
example  to  the  women  of  the  Revolution,  who  could  ill 
afford  to  spend  their  time  or  means  as  lavishly  as  they 
miqrht  have  desired.  "  On  one  occasion  she  o-ave  the 
best  proof  of  her  success  in  domestic  manufactures,  by 

the  exhibition  of  two  of  her  dresses,  which  were  com- 
4 


50  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

ff 

posed  of  cotton,  striped  with  silk,  and  entirely  home- 
made. The  silk  stripes  in  the  fabric  were  woven  from 
the  ravelines  of  brown  silk  stockingfs  and  old  crimson 
chair-covers !  " 

When  peace  was  declared  and  her  mantle  folded  round 
the  suffering  young  Republic,  Mrs.  Washington  wel- 
comed to  Mount  Vernon  her  hero-husband,  who  natur- 
ally hoped  that  he  might  "  move  gently  down  the  stream 
of  life  until  he  slept  with  his  fathers."  But  a  proud,  fond 
people  called  him  again  from  his  retreat  to  guide  the 
ship  of  state ;  nor  was  he  who  had  fought  her  battles, 
and  served  her  well,  recreant  now. 

Mrs.  Washington's  crowning  glory  in  the  world's 
esteem  is  the  fact  that  she  was  the  bosom  companion  of 
the  "Father  of  his  Country;"  but  her  fame  as  Martha 
Dandridge,  and  afterwards  as  Martha  Custis,  is  due 
alone  to  her  moral  worth.  To  her,  as  a  girl  and  woman, 
belonged  beauty,  accomplishments,  and  great  sweetness 
of  disposition.  Nor  should  we,  in  ascribing  her  imper- 
ishable memory  to  her  husband's  greatness,  fail  to  do 
reverence  to  the  noble  attributes  of  her  own  nature;  yet 
we  cannot  descend  to  the  hyperbolical  strain  so  often 
indulged  in  by  writers  when  speaking  of  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton. In  tracing  the  life  of  an  individual,  it  becomes  ne- 
cessary to  examine  the  great  events  and  marked  incidents 
of  the  times,  and  generally  to  form  from  such  landmarks 
the  motives  that  prompted  the  acts  of  an  earth-existence. 
More  especially  is  this  necessary  if  the  era  in  which  our 
subject  lived  was  remarkable  for  any  heroic  deeds  or 


HER    PERSONAL    ATTRIBUTES.  5 1 

valorous  exploits  which  affected  the  condition  of  man- 
kind. Personally,  Mrs.  Washington's  life  was  a  smooth 
and  even  existence,  save  as  it  was  stirred  by  some  nat- 
ural cause,  but  viewed  in  connection  with  the  historical 
events  of  her  day,  it  became  one  of  peculiar  interest. 

As  a  wife,  mother,  and  friend,  she  was  worthy  of  re- 
spect, but  save  only  as  the  companion  of  Washington  is 
her  record  of  public  interest.  She  was  in  nowise  a 
student,  hardly  a  regular  reader,  nor  gifted  with  literary 
ability ;  but  if  stern  necessity  had  forced  her  from  her 
seclusion  and  luxury,  hers  would  have  been  a  career  of 
active  effort  and  goodness.  Most  especially  would  she 
have  been  a  benevolent  woman,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted 
by  posterity  as  a  misfortune  that  there  was  no  real 
urgency  for  a  more  useful  life.  Her  good  fortune  it 
was  to  be  wealthy,  of  good  family,  young  and  attrac- 
tive ;  and  if  she  was  not  versed  in  the  higher  branches 
of  literature,  it  was  no  fault  of  her  own,  probably, 
since  the  drawbacks  incident  to  the  pursuit  of  knowl- 
edcre,  under  the  difficulties  and  obstacles  of  a  life  in  a 
new  country,  together  with  their  early  marriages,  de- 
terred women  from  "drinking  deep  of  the  Pierean 
spring;"  but,  under  the  benign  influences  of  Christian 
morality,  the  maidens  of  the  Old  Dominion  were  care- 
fully and  virtuously  trained,  and  were  exemplary  daugh- 
ters, wives,  and  mothers. 

Many  have  occupied  the  nominal  position  Mrs.  Wash- 
ington held,  but,  in  reality,  no  American,  or,  indeed,  no 
woman  of  earth,  will  ever  be  so  exalted  in  the  hearts  of 


V\B^"^ 


..T.-NtRS\T< 


52  MARTHA   WASHINGTON. 

a  nation  as  was  she  ;  and  yet  there  is  no  single  instance 
recorded  of  any  act  of  heroism  of  hers,  although  she 
lived  in  times  that  tried  men's  souls,  and  was  so  inti- 
mately associated  through  her  husband  with  all  the  great 
events  of  the  Revolution.  "  Nor  does  it  appear,  from 
the  documents  handed  down  to  us,  that  she  was  a  very 
notable  housewife,  but  rather  inclined  to  leave  the  matter 
under  her  husband's  control,  whose  method  and  love  of 
domestic  life  admirably  fitted  him  to  manage  a  large  es- 
tablishment. They  evidendy  lived  together  on  very  ex- 
cellent terms,  though  she  sometimes  was  disposed  to 
quarrel  with  him  about  the  grandchildren,  who  he  in- 
sisted (and  he  always  carried  the  point)  should  be 
under  thorough  disciplinarians,  as  well  as  competent 
teachers,  when  they  were  sent  from  home  to  be  edu- 
cated." 

It  was  a  source  of  regret  that  she  bore  no  children  to 
him,  but  an  able  writer  has  said  :  "  Providence  left  him 
childless  that  he  might  be  the  father  of  his  country."  It 
is  hard  to  judge  whether  or  not  It  was  a  blessing ;  but  it 
certainly  has  not  detracted  from  his  greatness  that  he  left 
no  successor  to  his  fame.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  all  the 
brighter  from  having  no  cloud  to  dim  the  solitary  gran- 
deur of  his  spotless  name.  Few  sons  of  truly  great  and 
illustrious  men  have  ever  reflected  honor  upon  their 
fathers  and  many  have  done  otherwise.  When  we  con- 
sider how  many  representative  men  of  the  world.  In  all 
nations  and  ages,  have  been  burdened  and  oppressed 
with  the  humiliating  conduct  of  their  children,  let  it  be  a 


DEATH    OF    MISS    CUSTIS.  53 

source  of  joy,  rather  than  of  regret,  that  there  was  but 
OJie  Washhigton,  either  by  the  ties  of  consanguinity  or 
the  will  of  Providence.  This  character  was  never  marred 
by  any  imperfect  type  of  its  own,  and  in  Washington's 
life  we  recognize  the  fact  that  occasional!}',  in  great  emer- 
gencies, God  lifts  up  a  man  for  the  deed;  when  the 
career  is  ended,  the  model,  though  not  the  example,  is 
lost  to  the  world. 

Mrs.  Washington's  two  children  (Martha  and  John 
Parke  Custis)  were  with  her  the  bright  years  of  her 
life  intervenincr  between  her  marriage  and  the  Revo- 
lution.  Her  daucrhter  was  fast  budding  into  woman- 
hood,  and  how  beautiful,  thought  the  loving  mother, 
were  the  delicate  outlines  of  her  fair  young  face! 
Airy  castles  and  visionary  scenes  of  splendor  reared 
their  grand  proportions  in  the  twilight-clouds  of  her 
imagination;  and  in  the  sunlight  of  security  she  saw 
not,  or,  if  perchance  did  define,  the  indistinct  outlines  of 
the  spectre,  grim  and  gaunt,  heeded  not  its  significant 
appearance  at  her  festive  board. 

In  all  the  natural  charms  of  youth,  freshness,  and 
worldly  possessions,  the  mother's  idol,  the  brother's  play- 
mate, and  father's  cherished  daughter,  died,  and  the  light 
of  the  house  went  out,  and  a  wail  of  anguish  filled  the 
air  as  the  night  winds  rushed  hurryingly  past  that  deso- 
late home  on  the  shore  of  the  murmuring  river. 

A  great  purpose  was  born  out  of  that  grief:  a  self- 
abnegated  firmness  to  rise  above  the  passionate  lamen- 
tations  of  selfish   sorrow;    and    though   afterward,    for 


54  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

years,  the  shadow  of  a  past  woe  rested  upon  that 
famous  home,  the  poor  loved  it  better  than  ever  before, 
and  meek  charity  found  more  wilHng  hands  than  in  the 
days  of  reckless  happiness.  Religion,  too,  and  winning 
sympathy,  softened  the  poignant  grief,  and 

"  The  fates  unwound  the  ball  of  time. 
And  dealt  it  out  to  man." 

The  cannon  of  the  Continental  Militia  at  Lexington 
belched  forth  its  hoarse  sound  on  the  mornino-  of  the 
19th  of  April,  1775,  as  in  the  gray  twilight  of  approach- 
ing day  a  band  of  invaders  sallied  up  to  demand  the  dis- 
persion of  the  rebels.  The  echo  of  those  reports  went 
rincfinsr  throuorh  the  distant  forests,  and  fleetest  couriers 
carried  its  tidings  beyond  the  rippling  waves  of  the  Po- 
tomac, calling  the  friends  of  freedom  to  arms.  Mrs. 
Washington  heard  the  war-cry,  and  felt  that  the  absence 
of  her  husband  was  now  indefinite;  for  she  knew  that 
from  his  post  in  the  councils  of  the  nation  he  would  go 
to  serve  his  country  in  the  field.  Nor  was  she  mistaken 
in  her  conclusions. 

She  met  the  Commander-in-chief  at  his  winter  head- 
quarters at  Cambridge,  after  an  absence  of  nearly  a  year, 
in  December,  i  775,  and  remained  with  him  until  opening 
of  the  spring  campaign.  During  the  Revolution  she 
continued  to  spend  each  winter  with  him  at  his  head- 
quarters. Early  in  this  year  she  returned  to  her  home, 
leaving  behind  her  son,  John  Parke  Custis,  who  had  been 
with  his  adopted  father  from  the  beginning  of  the  war 


AT   VALLEY    FORGE.  55 

The  next  winter  she  passed  at  Morrlstovvn,  New  Jersey, 
where  she  experienced  some  of  the  real  hardships  and 
sufferings  of  camp  Hfe.  The  previous  season,  at  Cam- 
bridge, the  officers  and  their  families  had  resided  in  the 
mansions  of  the  Tories,  who  had  deserted  them  to  join 
the  British;  but  at  Morristown  she  occupied  a  small 
frame-house,  without  any  convenience  or  comforts,  and, 
as  before,  returned  in  the  spring,  with  her  daughter-in- 
law  and  children,  to  Mount  Vernon.* 

Valley  Forge,  during  the  last  months  of  1777  and  the 
early  part  of  1778,  was  the  scene  of  the  severest  suffer- 
ings, replete  with  more  terrible  want  than  any  ever 
known  in  the  history  of  the  Colonies.-}- 

During  all  this  winter  of  horrors,  Mrs.  Washington 
remained  with  her  husband,  trying  to  comfort  and  ani- 
mate him  in  the  midst  of  his  trials.  Succeeding  years 
brought  the  same  routine,  and  victory  and  defeat  walked 
ofttimes  hand  in  hand.  October  of  17S1  brought  glad 
tidings  of  great  joy,  in  the  capture  of  Yorktown,  and 
nothing  seemed  to  defer  the  long  anticipated  return  of 
General  Washington  to  his  family  and  friends. 

Ere  yet  the  shouts  of  victory  rang  out  upon  the  listen- 
ing ear  of  a  continent.  Colonel   Custis  was  borne  from 


*  Mr.  John  Parke  Custis  was  married  to  Miss  Nelly  Calvert  the  third  of  Fel^ruary, 
1774- 

f  Six  miles  above  Novristown,  Pennsylvania,  and  twenty  from  Philadelphia,  on 
the  Schuylkill  river,  is  the  deep  hollow  known  as  Valley  Forge.  It  is  situated  at  the 
mouth  of  V^alley  creek,  and  on  either  side  rise  the  mountains  above  this  lonely  .spot. 
To  the  fact  that  in  this  valley  there  had  once  been  several  forges,  it  owes  its  name, 
and  here  Washington  found  winter-quarters  for  his  suffering  army. 


56  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

the  scene  of  triumph  to  a  village  in  New  Kent  county  to 
die,  and  soon  the  messenger  startled  the  wife  and 
mother  at  Mount  Vernon  with  the  mournful  intelligence. 
Washington,  amid  the  intense  joy  of  his  troops,  could  not 
conceal  his  anxious  feelino-s  over  the  condition  of  this 
deeply  loved  son  of  his  adoption,  and  his  heart  went  out 
to  his  crushed  wife,  so  soon  to  be  widowed,  and  to  Mrs. 
Washington,  who  idolized  the  son  of  her  youth.  "He 
left  Yorktown  on  the  5th  of  November,-  and  reached, 
the  same  day,  the  residence  of  his  old  friend.  Colonel 
Bassett.  He  arrived  just  in  time  to  receive  the  last 
breath  of  John  Parke  Custis,  as  he  had  several  years 
previously  rendered  tender  and  pious  offices  at  the 
death-bed  of  his  sister,  Miss  Custis.  The  deceased  had 
been  the  object  of  Washington's  care  from  childhood,  and 
been  cherished  by  him  with  paternal  affection.  Reared 
under  his  guidance  and  instructions,  he  had  been  fitted 
to  take  a  part  in  the  public  concerns  of  his  country,  and 
had  acquitted  himself  with  credit  as  a  member  of  the 
Virginia  Legislature.  He  was  but  twenty-eight  years 
old  at  the  time  of  his  death,  and  left  a  widow  and  four 
young  children.  It  was  an  unexpected  event,  and  the 
dying  scene  was  rendered  peculiarly  affecting  from  the 
presence  of  the  mother  and  wife  of  the  deceased.  Wash- 
ington remained  several  days  at  Eltham  to  comfort  them 
in  their  affliction.  As  a  consolation  to  Mrs.  Washington 
in  her  bereavement,  he  adopted  the  two  youngest  chil- 
dren of  the  deceased,  a  boy  and  girl,  who  thenceforth 
formed  a  part  of  his  immediate  family." 


JOURNEY   TO    NEW    YORK.  57 

Mrs.  Washinofton  did  not  know  diat  her  husband  had 
left  the  scene  of  his  triumph,  until  he  suddenly  appeared 
in  the  room  of  death ;  and  it  calmed  her  to  have  his 
presence  in  so  trying  an  hour.  He  returned  with  the 
sad  mourners  to  Mount  Vernon,  and  mingled  with  those 
two  sorrowful  hearts  the  tears  of  his  own  sad  soul. 

The  world  and  its  cares  called  him  hence,  and  he 
turned  away  from  his  quiet  home  to  meet  the  demands 
of  his  country  for  his  services.  Congress  received  him 
in  Philadelphia  with  distinguished  honors,  and  he  every- 
where was  the  recipient  of  his  country's  love  and  rev- 
erence. 

Called  from  his  retirement  to  preside  over  the  des- 
tinies of  his  country  as  its  first  President,  Washington 
immediately  left  his  home  and  repaired  to  New  York 
City,  the  seat  of  government.''' 

Our  young  country  demanded,  in  the  beginning,  that 
regard  for  forms  and  etiquette  which  would  command 
respect  in  the  eyes  of  foreign  courts ;  and,  acting  in 
accordance  with  this  design,  the  house  of  the  first  Pres- 
ident was  furnished  with  elegance,  and  its  routine  was 
arranged  in  as  formal  a  manner  as  that  of  St.  James  or 
St.  Cloud. 

Always  an  aristocrat,  Mrs.  Washington's  administra- 
tion as  hostess  was  but  a  reproduction  of  the  customs 
and  ceremonies  of  foreign  heads  of  government,  and  her 

*The  journey  to  New  York  was  a  continued  triumph.  The  august  spectacle  at 
the  bridge  of  Trenton  brought  tears  to  the  eyes  of  the  Chief,  and  forms  one  of  the 
most  brilliant  recollections  of  the  age  of  Washington. 


58  MARTHA   WASHINGTON. 

receptions  were  arranged  on  the  plan  of  the  EngHsh  and 
French  drawina;-rooms. 

She  assumed  the  duties  of  her  position,  as  wife  of  the 
Chief  Maeistrate,  with  the  twofold  advantao^e  of  wealth 
and  high  social  position,  and  was,  in  manner,  appearance 
and  character,  a  pleasing  and  graceful  representative 
of  American  womanhood. 

Reared  as  she  had  been,  a  descendant  of  the  chivalry 
of  Virginia,  who  in  their  turn  were  the  descendants  of 
the  English  nobility — aristocratic,  proud  and  pleased 
with  her  lofty  position — she  brought  to  bear  all  the 
brightness  of  a  prosperous  existence,  and  her  influence 
extended  to  foreign  lands. 

The  levees  held  at  the  Republican  Court  —  then 
located  at  No.  3  Franklin  Square,  New  York — were 
numerously  attended  by  the  fashionable  and  refined  of 
the  city.  The  rules  of  the  establishment  were  rigorous, 
and  persons  were  excluded  unless  in  the  dress  required. 
Access  was  not  easy,  and  dignified  stateliness  reigned 
over  the  mansion  of  the  first  President  of  the  United 
States.  The  subjoined  letter,  written  to  Mrs.  Warren 
soon  after  Mrs.  Washington's  arrival  at  the  seat  of 
government,  will  present  her  views  on  the  subject  of 
her  elevation  more  correctly  than  could  be  given  other- 
wise. 

"Your  very  friendly  letter  of  last  month  has  afforded 
me  much  more  satisfaction  than  all  the  formal  compli- 
ments and  empty  ceremonies  of  mere  etiquette  could 


VIEWS    ON    HER    ELEVATION.  59 

possibly  have  done.  I  am  not  apt  to  forget  the  feelings 
which  have  been  inspired  by  my  former  society  with 
good  acquaintances,  nor  to  be  insensible  to  their  ex- 
pressions of  gratitude  to  the  President;  for  you  know 
me  well  enough  to  do  me  the  justice  to  believe  that  I 
am  fond  only  of  what  comes  from  the  heart.  Under  a 
conviction  that  the  demonstrations  of  respect  and  affec- 
tion to  him  oriorinate  in  that  source,  I  cannot  denv  that 
I  have  taken  some  interest  and  pleasure  in  them.  The 
difficulties  which  presented  themselves  to  view  upon  his 
first  entering  upon  the  Presidency,  seem  thus  to  be  in 
some  measure  surmounted.  It  is  owinc:  to  the  kindness 
of  our  numerous  friends  in  all  quarters  that  my  new 
and  unwished-for  situation  is  not  a  burden  to  me. 
When  I  was  much  younger,  I  should  probably  have 
enjoyed  the  innocent  gayeties  of  life  as  much  as  most 
persons  of  my  age;  but  I  had  long  since  placed  all 
prospects  of  my  future  worldly  happiness  in  the  still 
enjoyment  of  the  fireside  at  Mount  Vernon.  I  little 
thought,  when  the  war  was  finished,  that  any  circum- 
stances could  possibly  happen  which  would  call  the 
General  into  public  life  again.  I  had  anticipated  that 
from  that  moment  we  should  be  suffered  to  grow  old 
together  in  solitude  and  tranquillity.  That  was  the  first 
and  dearest  wish  of  my  heart.  I  will  not,  however,  con- 
template with  too  much  regret,  disappointments  that 
were  inevitable,  though  his  feelings  and  my  own  were 
in  perfect  unison  with  respect  to  our  predilection  for 
private  life  ;   yet  I  cannot  blame  him  for  having  acted 


60  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

according  to  his  ideas  of  duty  in  obeying  the  voice  of 
his  country.  The  consciousness  of  having  attempted  to 
do  all  the  good  in  his  power,  and  the  pleasure  of  finding 
his  fellow-citizens  so  well  satisfied  with  the  disinterested- 
ness of  his  conduct,  will  doubtless  be  some  compensa- 
tion for  the  great  sacrifices  which  I  know  he  has  made. 
Indeed,  on  his  journey  from  Mount  Vernon  to  this  place, 
in  his  late  tour  through  the  Eastern  States,  by  every 
public  and  every  private  information  which  has  come  to 
him,  I  am  persuaded  he  has  experienced  nothing  to 
make  him  repent  his  having  acted  from  what  he  con- 
ceives to  be  a  sense  of  indispensable  duty.  On  the 
contrary,  all  his  sensibility  has  been  awakened  in  receiv- 
ing such  repeated  and  unequivocal  proofs  of  sincere 
regard  from  his  countr)'men.  With  respect  to  myself,  I 
sometimes  think  the  arrangement  is  not  quite  as  it 
ought  to  have  been  ;  that  I,  who  had  much  rather  be  at 
home,  should  occupy  a  place  with  which  a  great  many 
younger  and  gayer  women  would  be  extremely  pleased. 
As  my  grandchildren  and  domestic  connections  make 
up  a  great  portion  of  the  felicity  which  I  looked  for  in 
this  world,  I  shall  hardly  be  able  to  find  any  substitute 
that  will  indemnify  me  for  the  loss  of  such  endearing 
society.  I  do  not  say  this  because  I  feel  dissatisfied 
with  my  present  station,  for  everybody  and  everything 
conspire  to  make  me  as  contented  as  possible  in  it ;  yet 
1  have  learned  too  much  of  the  vanity  of  human  affairs 
to  expect  felicity  from  the  scenes  of  public  life.  I  am 
still  determined  to  be   cheerful  and  happy  in  whatever 


nilLADELPHIA   AS    SEAT   OF    GOVERNMENT.  6 1 

situation  I  may  be;  for  I  have  also  learned  from  expe- 
rience that  the  greater  part  of  our  happiness  or  misery 
depends  on  our  dispositions  and  not  on  our  circum- 
stances. We  carry  the  seeds  of  the  one  or  the  other 
about  with  us  in  our  minds,  wherever  we  go." 

The  second  year  of  Washington's  administration,  the 
seat  of  government  was  removed  to  Philadelphia.  Mrs. 
Washington  was  sick  when  she  started  on  the  journey, 
and  remained  in  Philadelphia  until  she  was  strong 
enough  to  go  on  to  Mount  Vernon. 

The  late  Rev.  Ashbel  Green,  for  a  lonof  time  Presi- 
dent  of  Princeton  College,  and  one  of  the  early  Chap- 
lains of  Congress,  in  speaking  of  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment, said:  "After  a  gfreat  deal  of  writing  and  talkincr 
and  controversy  about  the  permanent  seat  of  Congress 
under  the  present  Constitution,  it  was  determined  that 
Philadelphia  should  be  honored  with  its  presence  for  ten 
years,  and  afterward  the  permanent  location  should  be 
in  the  city  of  Washington,  where  it  now  is.  In  the 
meantime,  the  Federal  city  was  in  building,  and  the 
Legislature  of  Pennsylvania  voted  a  sum  of  money  to 
build  a  house  for  the  President,  perhaps  with  some  hope 
that  this  might  help  to  keep  the  seat  of  the  general 
government  in  the  Capital ;  for  Philadelphia  was  then 
considered  as  the  Capital  of  the  State.  What  was 
lately  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  was  the  structure 
erected  for  the  purpose.  But  as  soon  as  General 
Washington    saw    its   dimensions,    and    a    good   while 


64  MARTHA    WASHINGTON, 

the  Presidential  mansion;  and  the  ex-Commander-in- 
chief  paid  his  former  companions  in  arms  the  compli- 
ment to  wear  the  old  Continental  uniform." 

The  grandchildren  of  Mrs,  Washington  were  her 
only  companions  during  the  President's  long  absences 
m  his  office;- and  Mrs.  Robert  Morris  was  the  most 
social  visitor  at  the  mansion.  Several  times  mention 
is  made  of  her  presence  at  the  side  of  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton during  the  presentations  at  the  receptions.  And 
at  all  the  dinners  by  the  republican  Chief  Magistrate, 
the  venerable  Robert  Morris  took  precedence  of  every 
other  guest,  invariably  conducting  Mrs.  Washington, 
and  sitdng  at  her  right  hand.  At  this,  the  meridian 
period  of  her  life,  Mrs.  Washington's  personal  appear- 
ance was,  although  somewhat  portly  in  person,  fresh 
and  of  an  agreeable  countenance.  She  had  been  a 
handsome  woman  thirty  years  before,  when,  on  the  6th 
of  January,  1759,  she  was  married  to  Colonel  Wash- 
ington; and  in  an  admirable  picture  of  her  by  Wool- 
aston,  painted  about  the  same  time,  is  seen  something 
of  that  pleasing  grace  which  is  said  to  have  been  her 
distinction.  During  these  years  of  her  married  life, 
she  had  enjoyed  ample  opportunity  to  cultivate  that 
elegance  of  manner  for  which  she  was  conspicuous, 
and  to  develop  those  conversational  powers  which  ren- 
dered her  so  attractive.  Washington,  ever  quiet  and 
reserved  in  manner,  depended  on  her;  and  her  tact 
and  gentle  womanly  politeness  relieved  him  from  the 
irksome  duties  of  hospitality  when  business  called  him 


THE    FIRST    LEVEE    IX    ITIILADELPIIIA.  65 

elsewhere.  His  first  levee,  the  Marchioness  D'Yuro 
wrote  to  a  friend  in  New  York,  was  brilliant  beyond 
anything  that  could  be  imagined.  She  adds:  You  never 
could  have  had  such  a  drawinof-room;  and  thouoh 
there  was  a  crreat  deal  of  extravagfance,  there  was  so 
much  of  Philadelphia  tact  in  everything  that  it  must 
have  been  confessed  the  most  delii^htful  occasion  of  the 
kind  ever  known  in  this  country. 

Mrs.  Washington  at  this  time  was  fifty-eight  years 
old;  but  her  healthful,  rational  habits,  and  the  cease- 
less influence  of  the  principles  by  which  her  life  was 
habitually  regulated,  enabled  her  still  to  exhibit  un- 
diminished her  characteristic  activity,  usefulness,  and 
cheerfulness.  From  the  "Recollections"  of  a  daughter 
of  Mrs.  Blnney,  who  resided  opposite  the  President's 
house,  we  have  some  interesting  accounts.  She  says: 
"It  was  the  General's  custom  frequently,  when  the  day 
was  fine,  to  come  out  to  walk  attended  by  his  secre- 
taries, Mr.  Lear  and  Major  Jackson.  He  always  crossed 
directly  over  from  his  own  door  to  the  sunny  side  of 
the  street,  and  walked  down."  She  never  observed 
them  conversing,  and  often  wondered  and  watched  as 
a  child  to  see  if  any  of  the  party  spoke,  but  never  per- 
ceived that  anything  was  said.  He  was  always  dressed 
in  black,  and  all  three  wore  cocked  hats.  "It  was 
Mrs.  Washington's  custom  to  return  visits  on  the  third 
day,  and  in  calling  on  her  mother,  she  would  send  a 
footman  over,  who  would  knock  loudly  and  announce 
Mrs.  Washington,  who  would  then  come  over  with  Mr. 


64  r\IARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

the  Presidential  mansion;  and  the  ex-Commander-in- 
chief  paid  his  former  companions  in  arms  the  compH- 
ment  to  wear  the  old  Continental  uniform." 

The  grandchildren  of  Mrs.  Washington  were  her 
only  companions  during  the  President's  long  absences 
in  his  office;- and  Mrs,  Robert  Morris  was  the  most 
social  visitor  at  the  mansion.  Several  times  mention 
is  made  of  her  presence  at  the  side  of  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton during  the  presentations  at  the  receptions.  And 
at  all  the  dinners  by  the  republican  Chief  Magistrate, 
the  venerable  Robert  Morris  took  precedence  of  every 
other  guest,  invariably  conducting  Mrs.  Washington, 
and  sittinof  at  her  rio^ht  hand.  At  this,  the  meridian 
period  of  her  life,  Mrs.  Washington's  personal  appear- 
ance was,  although  somewhat  portly  in  person,  fresh 
and  of  an  agreeable  countenance.  She  had  been  a 
handsome  woman  thirty  years  before,  when,  on  the  6th 
of  January,  1759,  she  was  married  to  Colonel  Wash- 
ington; and  in  an  admirable  picture  of  her  by  Wool- 
aston,  painted  about  the  same  time,  is  seen  something 
of  that  pleasing  grace  which  is  said  to  have  been  her 
distinction.  During  these  years  of  her  married  life, 
she  had  enjoyed  ample  opportunity  to  cultivate  that 
elegance  of  manner  for  which  she  was  conspicuous, 
and  to  develop  those  conversational  powers  which  ren- 
dered her  so  attractive.  Washington,  ever  quiet  and 
reserved  in  manner,  depended  on  her;  and  her  tact 
and  gentle  womanly  politeness  relieved  him  from  the 
irksome  duties  of  hospitality  when  business  called  him 


THE    FIRST    LEVEE    IN    PHILADELPHIA.  65 

elsewhere.  His  first  levee,  the  Marchioness  D'Yuro 
wrote  to  a  friend  in  New  York,  was  brilliant  beyond 
anything-  that  could  be  imagined.  She  adds:  You  never 
could  have  had  such  a  drawinir-rooin;  and  though 
there  was  a  sfreat  deal  of  cxtravacrance,  there  was  so 
much  of  Philadelphia  tact  in  everything  that  it  must 
have  been  confessed  the  most  delisjhtful  occasion  of  the 
kind  ever  known  in  this  country. 

Mrs,  Washington  at  this  time  was  fifty-eight  years 
old;  but  her  healthful,  rational  habits,  and  the  cease- 
less influence  of  the  principles  by  which  her  life  was 
habitually  regulated,  enabled  her  still  to  exhibit  un- 
diminished her  characteristic  activity,  usefulness,  and 
cheerfulness.  From  the  "Recollections"  of  a  daughter 
of  Mrs.  Binney,  who  resided  opposite  the  President's 
house,  we  have  some  interesting  accounts.  She  says: 
"It  was  the  General's  custom  frequendy,  when  the  day 
was  fine,  to  come  out  to  walk  attended  by  his  secre- 
taries, Mr.  Lear  and  Major  Jackson.  He  always  crossed 
directly  over  from  his  own  door  to  the  sunny  side  of 
the  street,  and  walked  down."  She  never  observed 
them  conversing,  and  often  wondered  and  watched  as 
a  child  to  see  if  any  of  the  party  spoke,  but  never  per- 
ceived that  anything  was  said.  He  was  always  dressed 
in  black,  and  all  three  wore  cocked  hats.  "It  was 
Mrs.  Washington's  custoni  to  return  visits  on  the  third 
day,  and  in  calling  on  her  mother,  she  would  send  a 
footman  over,  who  would  knock  loudly  and  announce 
Mrs.  Washington,  who  would  then  come  over  with  Mr. 


66  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

Lear."  "  Her  manners  were  very  easy,  pleasant,  and 
unceremonious,  with  the  characteristics  of  other  Vir- 
ginia ladies."  An  English  manufacturer  breakfasted 
with  the  President's  family  on  the  8th  of  June,  1794. 
"I  confess,"  he  says,  "I  was  struck  with  awe  and  vener- 
ation when  I  recollected  that  I  was  now  in  the  presence 
of  the  great  Washington,  'the  noble  and  wise  bene- 
factor of  the  world,'  as  Mirabeau  styles  him.  The 
President  seemed  very  thoughtful,  and  was  slow  in 
delivering  himself,  which  induced  some  to  believe  him 
reserved.  But  it  was  rather,  I  apprehend,  the  result 
of  much  reflection;  for  he  had,  to  me,  an  appearance 
of  affability  and  accommodation.  He  was  at  this  time 
in  his  sixty-third  year,  but  had  very  little  the  appear- 
ance of  age,  having  been  all  his  life  so  exceedingly 
temperate.  Mrs.  Washington  herself  made  tea  and 
coffee  for  us.  On  the  table  were  two  small  plates  of 
sliced  tongue,  and  dry  toast,  bread  and  butter,  but  no 
broiled  fish,  as  is  the  general  custom  here.  She  struck 
me  as  being  something  older  than  the  President,  though 
I  understand  they  were  both  born  the  same  year.  She 
was  extremely  simple  in  her  dress,  and  wore  a  very 
plain  cap,  with  her  gray  hair  turned  up  under  it." 

Eight  years  of  prosperity  and  progression  blessed 
the  administration  of  Washington,  and  now  the  hour 
of  departure  was  drawing  near.  With  feelings  of 
pleasure,  Mrs.  Washington  prepared  for  the  long-de- 
sired return  to  her  home  on  the  Potomac;  and  when 
the   dauntless   robins  began  to  sing  and  hardy  daisies 


RETURN    TO    MOUNT    VERNON.  67 

to  bloom,  the  family  set  out,  accompanied  by  the  son  of 
General  Lafayette.  Once  again  the  wife  and  grand- 
mother assumed  the  duties  congenial  to  her  nature,  and 
it  was  reasonable  to  hope  that  she  might  pass  many 
years  of  tranquil,  unalloyed  happiness  under  her  own 
vine  and  fig-tree.  The  old  life  was  resumed,  and  the 
long-silent  house  echoed  the  voices  of  the  young  and 
happy.  It  was  during  this  season  of  rest  and  quiet  that 
Washington  devoted  much  of  his  time  to  the  planning 
and  laying  out  of  the  city  which  bears  his  name.  An 
account  is  given  of  his  coming,  on  one  occasion,  to  it, 
and  when  he  reached  the  wharf  the  cannon  pealed  forth 
a  welcome.  Passing  along  the  Georgetown  road,  he 
halted  in  front  of  the  .locality  intended  as  a  residence 
for  the  President,  where  workmen  were  then  laying  the 
foundation  of  the  building.  He  was  deeply  interested 
in  the  welfare  of  the  chosen  seat  of  the  government, 
and  an  amusing  anecdote  is  related  of  his  conference 
with  David  Burns,  whose  residence  was  on  the  ground 
south  of  the  Presidential  mansion,  and  was  until  re- 
cently standing.  Washington  alludes  to  him  in  one  of 
his  letters  as  the  "obstinate  Mr,  Burns;"  and  it  is  re- 
lated that,  when  the  President  was  dwelling  upon  the 
advantage  he  would  derive  from  the  sale,  the  old  man 
replied,  "I  suppose  you  think  people  here  are  going  to 
take  every  grist  that  comes  from  you  as  pure  grain;  but 
what  would  you  have  been  if  you  hadn't  married  the 
widow  Custis?" 

Mount  Vernon  was  constantly  thronged  with  visitors; 


68  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

and  to  the  "Correspondence  of  Washington/'  which, 
during  these  last  two  years  of  his  hfe,,  are  very  volum- 
inous, we  are  indebted  for  many  items  of  public  and 
private  interest.  But  a  blow  was  in  store  for  the  con- 
tented wife  which  none  suspected.  A  cold,  taken  after 
a  long  ride  about  the  farm,  produced  fever  and  swelling 
of  the  throat,  which,  on  the  14th  of  December,  1799,  re- 
sulted in  the  death  of  the  deeply  loved  husband.  A 
wail  of  anguish  went  up  from  the  nation  as  the  direful 
news  flew  by  each  hut  and  hamlet;  but  in  that  hallowed 
room,  forever  consecrated,  the  bereaved  woman  who 
has  lost  her  all  sits  calmly  serene.  She  suspects  that  * 
he  is  dead,  for  the  doctor  and  Mr.  Lear  are  gazing  at 
each  other  in  mute  anguish;  aod  rising  from  her  low 
seat  at  the  foot  of  his  bed,  she  sees  the  limbs  are  com- 
posed and  the  breath  gone.  O  agony!  what  is  there 
so  fearful  to  a  clinsrino-  woman's  heart  as  to  see  the 
stronof,  lovincf  arm  that  enfolded  her  cold  and  stiff  for- 
ever?  The  cover  is  straightened  as  he  fixed  It,  and  his 
face  is  composed  after  the  violent  struggle;  but  what  is 
this  appearance  of  triumph  to  the  desolate  wife,  who 
gasps  for  breath  like  one  drowning  as  she  totters  to  his 
side?  Yet  the  sweet  expression  calms  her;  perhaps 
she  is  thinking  of  how  he  would  have  her  do  if  his  spirit 
could  only  speak.  Whatever  of  inward  peace  receiving, 
there  Is  a  determined  effort  at  control  perceptible,  and 
she  is  saying,  "'Tis  well;  all  is  now  over.  I  shall  soon 
follow  him.  I  have  no  miore  trials  to  pass  through." 
One  long  look,  as  if  her  hungry  soul  was  obtaining  food 


DEATH    OF    WASHINGTON.  69 

to  feed  on  through  all  eternity,  and  she  Is  assisted  from 
the  room.  How  full  of  holy  memories  must  that  cham- 
ber of  death  have  been  to  her  as  she  summoned  courage 
to  turn  and  drink  in  the  last  look  !  The  oreat  fireside, 
with  the  smouldering  embers  dying  Into  ashes  gray, 
the  quaint  old  mantel,  all  covered  with  vials  and  ap- 
pendages of  a  sick  apartment,  their  easy-chairs  side  by 
side,  one  deserted  forever,  and  upon  the  bed  lay  the 
form  of  her  friend  and  companion.  It  was  wrong  to 
let  her  stand  there  and  suffer  so,  but  her  awe-stricken 
appearance  paralyzes  the  stoutest  heart,  and  they  only 
stand  and  wait.  A  pale,  haggard  look  succeeds  the  fierce 
intensity  of  her  gaze,  and  she  wraps  her  shawl  about  her 
and  turns  forever  from  all  she  in  that  hour  lost  An- 
other room  receives  her ;  another  fire  Is  built  for  her : 
and  in  the  endless  watches  of  that  black  niorht  she 
mastered  the  longings  of  her  heart,  and  never  more 
crossed  the  threshold  of  that  chamber  of  her  loved  and 
lost.  A  sickeninof  feelincr  of  utter  loneliness  and  deso- 
latlon  ushered  in  the  early  morn  of  the  first  day  of  her 
widowhood,  but  her  resolve  was  made  ;  and  when  her 
loved  ones  saw  it  pained  her,  they  urged  no  more  that 
she  should  go  back  to  the  old  apartment  she  had  occu- 
pied all  her  married  life. 

"  Congress  resolved,  that  a  marble  monument  be 
erected  by  the  United  States,  In  the  Capitol  at  the  city 
of  Washington,  and  that  the  family  of  George  Washing- 
ton be  requested  to  permit  his  body  to  be  deposited 
under  It,  and  that  the  monument  be  so  designed  as  to 


70  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

commemorate  the  great  events  of  his  military  and  polit- 
ical Hfe.     And  it  further  resolved, 

"That  there  be  a  funeral  procession  from  Congress 
Hall  to  the  German  Lutheran  Church  in  honor  of  the 
memory  of  General  George  Washington,  on  Thursday, 
the  26th  inst,  and  that  an  oration  be  prepared  at  the 
request  of  Congress,  to  be  delivered  before  both  Houses 
on  that  day,  and  that  the  President  of  the  Senate  and 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives  be  desired  to 
request  one  of  the  members  of  Congress  to  prepare 
and  deliver  the  same.     And  it  further  resolved, 

"That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be  re- 
quested to  direct  a  copy  of  the  resolutions  to  be  trans- 
mitted to  Mrs.  Washington,  assuring  her  of  the  pro- 
found respect  Congress  will  ever  bear  to  her  person  and 
character;  of  their  condolence  on  the  late  afflicting 
Dispensation  of  Providence,  and  entreating  her  assent 
to  the  interment  of  the  remains  of  General  George 
Washington  in  the  manner  expressed  in  the  first  reso- 
lution.    And  it  further  resolved, 

"That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be  re- 
quested to  issue  a  Proclamation  notifying  the  People 
throughout  the  United  States  the  recommendation  con- 
tained in  the  third  resolution." 

In  reply  to  the  above  resolutions,  which  were  trans- 
mitted by  the  President  (John  Adams)  on  the  23d  Dec, 
1799,  Mrs.  Washington  says: 

Mount  Vernon,  Dec.  2,\st,  1799. 

"Sir: — While  I  feel  with  keenest  anguish  the  late 


MOUNT   VERNON THE    MONUMENT.  7  I 

dispensation  of  Divine  Providence,  I  cannot  be  insensible 
to  the  mournful  tributes  of  respect  and  veneration  which 
are  paid  to  the  memory  of  my  dear,  deceased  husband, 
and  as  his  best  services  and  most  anxious  wishes  were 
always  devoted  to  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  his 
country,  to  know  that  they  were  truly  appreciated 
and  gratefully  remembered,  affords  no  inconsiderable 
consolation. 

"  Taught  by  that  great  example  w^hich  I  have  so  long- 
had  before  me,  never  to  oppose  my  private  wishes  to 
the  public  will,  I  must  consent  to  the  request  made  by 
Congress  which  you  have  had  the  goodness  to  transmit 
to  me,  and  in  doing  this  I  need  not,  I  cannot  say,  what  a 
sacrifice  of  individual  feeling  I  make  to  a  sense  of  public 
duty. 

"  With     grateful    acknowledgments    and     unfeigned 
thanks  for   the  personal  respects  and  evidences  of  con- 
dolence expressed  by  Congress  and  yourself, 
"  I  remain,  very  respectfully, 

"  Your  most  obedient  and  humble  servant, 
"Martha  Washington." 

But  this  pain  might  have  been  spared  her,  for  the 
monument  is  not  yet  erected,  and  the  remains  are  still 
at  Mount  Vernon,  their  most  fitting  resting-place. 

The  twofold  duties  of  life  pressed  constantly  upon 
her,  nor  did  she  shirk  any  claim.  Yet  the  compressed 
lip,  and  the  oftentimes  quivering  eyelid  betrayed  the  rest- 
less moanings  of  her  aching  heart. 


72  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

It  has  been  remarked  that  she  resembled  Washington 
in  manners  and  person ;  she  was  hke  him  as  every 
weaker  nature  is  Hke  a  stronger  one  Hving  in  close 
relationship.  She  received  from  his  stronger  will  his 
influences,  and  he  impressed  her  with  his  views  so 
thoroughly  that  she  could  not  distinguish  her  own. 
Relying  on  his  guidance  in  every  thing,  she  studied  his 
features  until  her  softer  lineaments  imperceptibly  grew 
like  his,  and  the  tones  of  her  voice  sounded  wonderfully 
similar.  Imbibinof  the  sentiments  and  teachings  of  such 
a  nature,  her  own  life  was  ennobled  and  his  rendered 
liappy. 

She  had  lived  through  the  five  grand  acts  of  the 
drama  of  American  Independence,  had  witnessed  its 
prelude  and  its  closing  tableaux,  and  stood  waiting  to 
hear  the  swell  of  the  pean  she  was  yet  to  sing  in 
heaven.  Her  life  was  passed  in  seasons  of  darkness,  as 
of  glorious,  refulgent  happiness,  and  was  contempor- 
aneous with  some  of  the  greatest  minds  that  will  ever 
shine  out  from  any  century.  Her  sphere  was  limited 
entirely  to  social  occupations,  and  possessing  wealth 
and  position  she  gratified  her  taste.  Had  her  character 
been  a  decided  one,  it  would  have  stamped  the  age  in 
which  she  flourished,  for,  as  there  never  was  but  one 
Washington,  so  there  will  never  come  a  time  when  there 
will  be  the  same  opportunities  as  Mrs.  Washington  had 
for  winning  a  name  and  an  individuality.  But  she  did 
not  aspire  to  any  nobler  ambition  than  merely  to  per- 
form   the    duties    of  her    home,    and    she    lives    in   the 


A    DESOLATE    WOMAN.  73 

memories  ot  her  descendants,  and  in  the  hearts  of  the 
people  of  the  United  States,  as  the  wife  of  the  ilkistrious 
Father  of  his  Country,  and  the  first  in  position  of  the 
women  of  the  Revolution. 

In  the  enofravinof  we  have  before  us,  taken  while  in 
the  Executive  Mansion,  we  trace  the  gradual  develop- 
ment of  her  life.  All  the  way  through  it  has  counted 
more  of  bliss  than  of  sorrow,  and  the  calm  contentment 
of  the  face  in  repose  speaks  of  a  heart  full  of  peace  and 
pleasantness.  How  expressive  of  sympathy  and  kind- 
ness of  heart  is  that  serene  face,  and  how  instinctively 
we  would  trust  it!  Sustained  as  she  was  by  her  deep 
devotional  piety,  and  shielded  by  the  protecting  arm  of 
her  husband,  she  grew  in  spiritual  development  and 
fondly  believed  herself  strong  and  self-reliant.  But 
when  she  was  tested,  when  the  earthly  support  was 
removed,  the  inward  strength  was  insufficient,  and  she 
pined  under  the  loss  until  she  died. 

The  death  of  her  husband  was  the  last  event  of  Mrs. 
Washington's  life.  It  shattered  her  nerves  and  broke 
her  heart.  She  never  recovered  from  it.  The  shaft  of 
agony  which  had  buried  itself  in  her  soul  was  never 
removed.  Fate  had  now  dealt  the  last  deadly  blow  to 
her  earthly  happiness.  Her  children,  their  father,  the 
faithful,  affectionate,  sympathizing  friend  and  counsellor, 
with  whom  through  so  many  years  she  had  stood 
side  by  side  in  great  and  grievous  trials,  dangers,  and 
sorrows — all  were  gone?  It  was  useless  to  strive  to  be 
courageous :  a  glance  at  the  low,  narrow  vault  under  the 


74  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

side  of  the  hill  unnerved  her.  She  stood,  the  desolate 
survivor,  like  a  lone  sentinel  upon  a  deserted  battle-field, 
regarding  in  mute  despair  the  fatal  destruction  of  hope, 
and  love,  and  joy.  I'hrough  all  time  that  Saturday 
night  would  be  the  closing  scene  of  her  life,  even 
though  her  existence  should  be  lengthened  to  a  span  of 
years. 

"  The  memory  of  his  faintest  tone, 
In  the  deep  midnight  came  upon  her  soul, 
And  cheered  the  passing  hours  so  sad,  so  lone, 
As  on  they  rolled." 

Thirty  months  numbered  themselves  among  eternity's 
uncounted  years,  and  it  became  apparent  to  all  that 
another  death-scene  was  to  be  enacted,  and  the  lonely 
occupant  of  the  room  above  that  other  chamber  of  death, 
was  reaching  the  goal  of  its  long  felt  desire.  The 
gentle  spirit  was  striving  to  free  itself,  and  the  glad  light 
in  the  dim  eye  asserted  the  pleasure  experienced  in  the 
knowledo-e  of  the  coming  change. 

For  many  months  Mrs.  Washington  had  been  growing 
more  gloomy  and  silent  than  ever  before,  and  the  friends 
who  orathered  about  her  called  her  actions  strancre  and 
incomprehensible.  She  stayed  much  alone,  and  declined 
every  offer  of  company,  but  the  last  days  of  her  life 
she  seemed  more  cheerful  and  contented.  When  the 
end  came  on  that  bright,  spring  morning  in  1801  she 
gave  her  blessing  to  all  about  her,  and  sank  quietly  to 
rest,  in  the  seventy-first  year  of  her  age,  and  the  third 
of  her  widowhood. 


A    VISIT   TO    MOUNT   VERNON.  75 

Her  resting-place  beside  her  husband  is,  like  Mecca 
and  Jerusalem,  the  resort  of  the  travellers  of  all  nations, 
who,  wandering  in  its  hallowed  precincts,  imbibe  anew 
admiration  and  veneration  for  the  immortal  genius, 
whose  name  is  traced  in  imperishable  remembrance  in 
the  hearts  of  his  grateful  countrymen.  Side  by  side 
their  bodies  lie  crumbling  away,  while  their  spirits  have 
returned  to  their  Author.  The  placid  Potomac  kisses 
the  banks  of  that  precious  domain,  and  the  ripple  of 
the  receding  waves  makes  pleasant  music  all  day  along 
the  shore  of  Mount  Vernon. 

The  temptation  to  see  this  historic  and  romantic  home 
of  the  most  beloved  of  the  nation's  dead  was  not  to  be 
resisted,  and  one  winter  day  in  company  with  one  of  the 
few  surviving  relatives  who  bear  that  honored  name,  the 
start  was  made  from  Washintrton.  Although  the  weather 
was  cold  and  disagreeable,  with  a  threatening  aspect  of 
a  snow-storm,  we  found  the  little  vessel  filled  with 
pilgrims,  bound  to  the  tomb  of  Washington.  This  trip 
is  one  of  intense  interest,  and  particularly  since  the 
events  of  the  civil  war  have  given  to  all  the  locality 
additional  attraction.  Arlington,  Alexandria,  and  Fort 
Washington  !  what  memories  are  stirred  by  mention  of 
these  names,  and  how  acute  is  remembrance  when  we 
stand  face  to  face  with  these  places.  The  old  common- 
wealth is  dear  to  every  generous  American,  whether  of 
northern  or  southern  birth,  but  more  especially  to  the 
people  of  the  South,  whose  ancestors  fondly  termed  it 
the  "motherland." 


76  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

It  was  the  quaint  look  of  the  place  which  appealed 
strongest  to  the  senses,  and  the  fact  that  it  is  long  past 
a  century  old,  its  foundation  having  been  laid  in  1748. 
The  boat  anchored  at  Alexandria,  and  we  gazed  wistfully 
up  those  streets  through  which  Washington  had  often 
passed,  and  looked  in  vain  to  see  some  "vast  and  ven- 
erable pile,  so  old  it  seemed  only  not  to  fall,"  but  the 
residences  of  most  of  the  old  inhabitants  are  the  abodes 
of  wealth,  and  they  exhibit  evidences  of  care  and  pres- 
ervation. 

Alexandria  was  early  a  place  of  some  note,  for  five 
colonial  governors  met  here  by  appointment,  in  1755, 
to  take  measures  with  General  Braddock  respecting  his 
expedition  to  the  West.  "  That  expedition  proceeded 
from  Alexandria,  and  tradition  still  points  to  the  site 
on  which  now  stands  the  olden  Episcopal  Church  (but 
then,  in  the  woods),  as  the  spot  where  he  pitched  his 
tent,  while  the  road  over  the  western  hills  by  which  his 
army  withdrew,  long  bore  the  name  of  this  unfortunate 
commander.  But  the  reminiscences  which  the  Alexan- 
drians most  cherish  are  those  which  associate  their  town 
with  the  domestic  attachments  and  habits  of  Washington, 
and  the  stranger  is  still  pointed  to  the  church  of  which 
he  was  vestryman ;  to  the  pew  in  which  he  customarily 
sate ;  and  many  striking  memorials  of  his  varied  life  are 
carefully  preserved." 

That  old  church  where  Washington  and  his  wife  were 
wont  to  worship,  how  tenderly  it  is  looked  upon  now, 
and  with  what  hallowed  feelings !     All  the  commonplace 


HALLOWED    ASSOCL\TIONS.  77 

thoughts  that  fill  our  minds  every  day  are  laid  aside, 
while  we  contemplate  the  character  of  the  man  who  has 
stamped  his  image  in  the  hearts  of  freemen  throughout 
the  world.  There  is  another  church  at  which  one  feels 
these  ennoblincr  heart-throbs,  and  which  I  confess 
moved  me  as  sensibly,  and  that  is  the  little  Dutch  church 
in  "  Sleepy  Hollow,"  once  the  shrine  at  which  Wash- 
inofton  Irvinof  offered  the  adoration  of  his  Guileless 
heart.  His  beaudfully  expressed  admiration  of  Wash- 
ington possibly  occasioned  the  constant  comparison,  and 
to  many  these  two  temples  are  as  inseparable  as  the 
memories  of  these  great  men  are  linked. 

The  weather,  which  had  been  indicative  all  day  of  a 
storm,  cleared  off  as  we  approached  Mount  Vernon,  and 
as  we  landed  at  the  wharf,  it  shone  brightly  upon  us. 
Winding  round  the  hill,  following  a  narrow  pathway, 
we  reached  the  tomb  before  the  persons  who  had  taken 
the  carriage-way  came  in  view,  but  preferring  to  examine 
it  last,  we  continued  the  meandering  path  to  the  front 
of  the  house.  It  had  been  the  home,  in  early  youth,  of 
the  person  who  accompanied  me,  and,  listening  to  her 
explanations  and  descriptions,  an  interest  was  felt  which 
could  not  otherwise  have  been  summoned.  The  house 
is  bare  of  any  furniture  whatever,  save  a  small  quantity 
owned  by  the  persons  who  live  there,  and  on  a  winter's 
day  looked  cheerless  and  uninviting.  The  central  part 
of  Mount  V'^ernon  house  was  built  by  Lawrence  Wash- 
ington, brother  to  the  General ;  the  wings  were  added 
by  the   General,  and  the  whole  named  after  Admiral 


78  MARTHA    WASIIIXGTON. 

Vernon,  under  whom  Lawrence  Washington  had  served. 
The  dininor-room  on  the  ricrht  contains  the  Carrara 
marble  mantle-piece  sent  from  Italy  to  Generaf  Wash- 
ington. It  is  elaborately  carved  and  is  adorned  with 
Siehna  marble  columns  ;  Canova  is  said  to  be  the  artist 
who  carved  it.  We  feel  ashamed  to  add,  it  is  cased  in 
w^ire-work  to  prevent  its  being  demolished  by  injudicious, 
not  to  say  criminal  visitors.  The  rooms  are  not  large, 
with  the  exception  of  the  one  mentioned  above,  which 
is  spacious  ;  the  quaint  old  wainscoting  and  wrought 
cornices  are  curious,  and  in  harmony  with  the  adorn- 
ments of  the  mansion.  The  piazza  reaches  from  the 
ground  to  the  eaves  of  the  roof,  and  is  guarded  on  the 
top  by  a  bright  and  tasteful  balustrade ;  the  pillars  are 
large  and  present  a  simple  and  grand  idea  to  the  mind. 
Beneath  this  porch  the  Father  of  his  Country  was 
accustomed  to  walk,  and  the  ancient  stones,  to  hearts  of 
enthusiasm,  are  full  of  deep  and  meditative  interest. 

The  room  in  which  he  died  is  small  and  now  bereft 
of  every  thing  save  the  mantle-piece ;  just  above  is  the 
apartment  in  which  she  breathed  her  dying  blessing. 
A  narrow  stair-case  leads  from  the  door  of  his  room, 
which  was  never  entered  by  her  after  his  death.  The 
green-house,  once  the  pride  of  Mrs.  Washington,  has 
since  been  burned,  and  there  remains  but  a  very  small 
one,  put  together  carelessly  to  protect  the  few  rare 
plants  remaining.  In  front  of  the  house,  the  front  facing 
the  orchards,  and  not  the  river,  is  a  spacious  lawn 
surrounded  by  serpentine  walks.     On  either  side,  brick 


A    DECAYED    HOMESTEAD.  79 

walls,  all  covered  with  ivy  and  ancient  moss,  enclose  gar- 
dens. The  one  on  die  right  of  the  house  was  once  filled 
with  costly  ornamental  plants  from  the  tropical  climes, 
and  in  which  was  the  green-house  ;  but  the  box  trees 
have  grown  high  and  irregular,  and  the  creepers  are 
running  wild  over  what  hardy  rose  bushes  still  survive 
to  tell  of  a  past  existence  of  care  and  beauty.  In  the 
lifetime  of  Mrs.  Washington,  her  home  must  have  been 
very  beautiful,  "  ere  yet  time's  effacing  fingers  had  traced 
the  lines  where  beauty  lingered."  It  is  even  now  a 
splendid  old  place,  but  rapidly  losing  the  interest  it  once 
had.  The  estate  has  passed  out  of  the  family,  and  the 
furniture  has  been  removed  by  descendants,  to  whom  it 
was  given :  much  that  lent  a  charm  to  the  place  is  gone, 
and  the  only  interesting  object,  save  the  interior  of  the 
mansion  itself,  is  the  key  of  the  Bastile,  presented  by 
Lafayette,  and  hanging  in  a  case  on  the  wall.  Portions 
of  the  house  are  closed,  and  the  stairway  in  the  front 
hall  is  barricaded  to  prevent  the  intrusion  of  visitors. 
The  room  in  which  Mrs.  Washington  died,  just  above 
the  one  occupied  by  her  husband,  was  locked,  and  we  did 
not  view  the  room  in  which  she  suffered  so  silendy,  and 
from  which  her  freed  spirit  sought  its  friend  and  mate. 

The  small  windows  and  low  ceilings,  together  with 
the  many  little  closets  and  dark  passage-ways,  strike 
one  strangely  who  is  accustomed  to  the  mansions  of 
modern  times;  but  these  old  homesteads  are  numerous 
throughout  the  "  Old  Dominion,"  and  are  the  most 
precious  of  worldly  possessions  to  the  descendants  of 


8o  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

worthy  families.  There  must  be  more  than  twenty 
apartments,  most  of  them  small  and  plain  In  finish. 
The  narrow  doors  and  wide  fire-places  are  the  ensigns 
of  a  past  age  and  many  years  of  change,  but  are  elo- 
quent in  their  obsoleteness. 

The  library  which  ordinarily  is  the  most  interesting 
room  in  any  house,  should  be  doubly  so  in  this  home  of 
Washington's ;  but,  bare  of  all  save  the  empty  cases  in 
the  wall,  it  is  the  gloomiest  of  all.  Books  all  gone,  and 
the  occupation  of  the  room  by  the  present  residents 
deprives  it  of  any  attractions  it  might  otherwise  have. 
Here,  early  In  the  morning  and  late  at  night,  he  worked 
continuously,  keeping  up  his  increasing  correspondence 
and  managing  his  vast  responsibilities. 

Murmurs  of  another  war  reached  him  as  he  sat  at  his 
table  planning  rural  improvements,  and  from  this  room 
he  wrote  accepting  the  position  no  other  could  fill  while 
he  lived. 

Here  death  found  him,  the  night  before  his  last 
illness,  when  cold  and  hoarse  he  came  in  from  his  long 
ride,  and  warmed  himself  by  his  library  fire.  That  night 
he  went  up  to  his  room  over  this  favorite  study,  and 
said  in  reply  to  a  member  of  his  family  as  he  passed 
out,  who  urged  him  to  do  something  for  it,  "  No,  you 
know  I  never  take  any  thing  for  a  cold.  Let  It  go  as  it 
came." 

The  winds  and  rains  of  eighty-odd  years  have  beaten 
upon  that  sacred  home  on  the  high  banks  of  the  silvery 
waters  beneath,  since  the  widowed,  weary  wife  was  laid 


ASSOCIATION    OF    FAMILIAR    SCENES.  8 1 

to  rest  beside  her  noble  dead,  and  the  snows  of  winter 
and  storms  of  summer  have  left  its  weather-worn  and 
stained  front  looking  like  some  ghost  of  other  days 
left  alone  to  tell  of  its  former  life  and  beauty.  In  its 
lonely  grandeur  it  stands  appealing  to  us  for  that 
reverence  born  of  sentiments,  stirred  by  the  recollections 
of  the  great  and  good. 

There  was  no  resisting  the  feelings  of  gloomy  depres- 
sion as  we  passed  out  the  front  toward  the  river,  and 
took  ths  path  leading  to  the  tomb.  Far  down  the  side 
c:  the  hill,  perched  on  a  knoll  surrounded  by  trees,  a 
summer-house  was  seen,  and  the  walk  leading  by  many 
angles  down  to  it.  The  view  of  the  river  is  said  to  be 
fine  from  this  point,  but  we  did  not  undertake  the 
difficulties  of  getting  to  it.  The  wooden  steps  con- 
structed across  the  ravines  are  fast  sinking  to  ruin,  and 
the  swollen  stream  from  the  side  of  die  hill  dashing 
against  them,  was  distinctly  audible  to  us  as  we  stood 
far  above.  The  swallows  and  bats  seem  to  have  built 
their  nests  in  its  forsaken  interior,  and  we  were  not 
inclined  to  molest  them. 

Many  times  we  looked  back  at  the  old  homestead 
endeared  to  every  American,  and  stamped  upon 
memory  each  portion  of  its  outlines. 

High  above  it,  the  small  cupola  sported  its  little 
glittering  weather-vane  as  brilliant  as  though  it  had 
been  gilded  but  yesterday.  Here  again  was  an  object 
which  unconsciously  associated  Washington  with  his 
namesake,  Washington  Irving.      In  the  pleasant  sum- 


82  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

mer-time  I  had  stood  in  front  of  the  httle  "  Woolfort's 
Roost,"  and  enjoyed  to  the  finest  fibre  of  feehng-  its 
lovely  simplicity.  Above  it,  too,  a  little  weather-cock 
coquetted  with  the  wind  as  it  swept  down  from  Tappan 
Zee,  the  same  said  to  have  been  carefully  removed  from 
the  Vander  Hayden  palace  at  Albany,  and  placed  there 
by  tender  hands  long  years  ago.  Upon  the  side  of  the 
hill  I  had  stopped  then  as  now,  and  looked  back  at  the 
house  above,  embosomed  in  vines  interspersed  with 
delicately  tinted  fuchsias. 

Even  as  we  were  standing'  now  lookincr  for  the  first 
and  perhaps  the  last  time  upon  Mount  Vernon,  so  in  the 
beautiful  harvest  month  v/e  had  gazed  upon  the  Hudson, 
spread  out  like  a  vast  panorama  with  its  graceful 
yachts  and  swift  schooners,  and  descended  the  winding 
path  to  the  water's  edge.  But  Mount  Vernon  was 
dressed  in  winter's  dreariness,  and  its  desolate  silence 
oppressed  rather  than  elevated  the  feelings.  It  is  a 
fit  place  for  meditation  and  communion,  and  to  a 
spiritual  nature  the  influences  of  the  ancient  home 
are  full  of  harmony.  When  the  only  approach  was 
by  conveyance  from  Alexandria,  the  visitors  were  not 
so  numerous  as  since  the  days  of  a  daily  steamer  from 
Washington  City,  and  much  of  the  solemnity  usually 
felt  for  so  renowned  a  spot  is  marred  by  the  coarse 
I  remarks  and  thoughtless  acts  of  the  many  who  saunter 
through  the  grounds. 

A  gay  party  of  idlers  had  arranged  their  eatables 
upon  the  stone  steps  of  tlie  piazza,  and  sat  in  the  sun- 


MOUNT   VERNON.  83 

shine  laughing  merrily.  Even  those  old  rocks  smoothly 
worn,  where  so  often  had  stood  the  greatest  of  men, 
were  not  hallowed  nor  protected  from  the  selfish 
convenience  of  unrefined  people.  Callous,  indeed, 
must  be  the  heart  which  could  walk  unmoved  through 
so  endeared  a  scene.  To  tread  the  haunts  where 
men  have  thought  and  acted  orreat,  is  ennobllnof  to 
sensitive  organizations,  and  to  linger  over  evidences 
of  olden  times  inspires  all  generous  minds  with 
enthusiasm. 

The  grounds  roll  downward  from  the  mansion  house, 
and  in  a  green  hollow  midway  between  that  and  th(* 
river,  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  west  from 
the  summer  house,  and  thirty  rods  from  the  house,  is  the 
vault  where  reposed  the  remains  of  Washington  ami 
Martha  his  wife.  Now  the  tomb  contains  about  thirty 
members  of  his  family,  and  is  sealed  up,  and  in  front  of 
the  main  vault,  enclosed  by  an  iron  railing,  are  the  two 
sarcophagi  containing  the  ashes  of  husband  and  wife. 
"A  melancholy  glory  kindles  around  that  cold  pile  of 
marble,"  and  we  stood  mute  in  thought. 

But  before  reaching  it  we  pass  the  old  vault  where  for 
a  few  years  he  was  buried.  The  few  cedars  on  it  are 
withered  and  the  door  stands  open,  presenting  a  deso- 
late appearance.  With  vines  and  flowers,  and  leafy 
trees  filled  with  singing  birds,  this  sight  would  perhaps 
be  less  chilling ;  but  the  barren  aspects  of  nature  united 
with  the  solemn  stillness  of  the  country,  conspired  to 


84  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

freeze  every  thought  of  Hfe  and  beauty,  and  the  mind 
dwelt  upon  the  rust  of  decay,* 

Lafayette  stopped  at  Mount  Vernon  when  about  to 
return  to  France  after  his  visit  to  this  country,  in  1826, 
havincr  reserved  for  the  last  his  visit  to  Washington's 
Tomb,  and  the  scene  is  thus  described  by  Mr.  Seward 
in  his  Life  of  John  Ouincy  Adams: 

"When  the  boat  came  opposite  the  tomb  of  Washing- 
ton, at  Mount  Vernon,  it  paused  in  its  progress.  La- 
fayette arose.  The  wonders  which  he  had  performed  for 
a  man  of  his  age,  in  successfully  accomplishing  labors 
enough  to  have  tested  his  meridian  vigor,  whose  anima- 
tion rather  resembled  the  spring  than  the  winter  of  life, 
now  seemed  unequal  to  the  task  he  was  about  to  per- 
form— to  take  a  last  look  at  'The  Tomb  of  Washing- 
ton ! ' 

"He  advanced  to  the  effort.  A  silence  the  most  im- 
pressive reigned  around,  till  the  strains  of  sweet  and 
plaintive  music  completed  the  grandeur  and  sacred  sol- 


*This  sketch  was  written  previous  to  the  restoration  of  the  place  by  the  Ladies' 
Mount  Vernon  Association.  Now  it  has  been  restored  as  far  as  possible,  and  many 
old  relics  have  been  returned  to  their  apartments.  The  equestrian  portrait  of 
Washington  by  Rembrandt  Peale,  the  harpsichord  which  was  presented  by  Wash- 
ington to  his  step-daughter,  and  which  is  well  preserved,  together  with  many  old 
paintings  and  Revolutionary  relics,  adorn  the  once  bare  rooms.  The  bed  on  which 
Washington  died  has  been  restored  to  its  place,  and  a  number  of  pieces  of  furniture 
in  the  house  at  the  time  of  Mrs.  Washington's  death  are  again  there.  The  grounds 
have  been  put  in  excellent  order,  and  the  old  farm  is  cultivated  and  yields  a  revenue 
to  the  Mount  Vernon  Ladies'  Association,  which  deserves  unbounded  credit  for  res- 
cuing the  grand  old  place  from  destruction,  and  restoring  it  as  far  as  possible  to  its 
former  apjiearance  and  condition. 


PRINCE  OF  WALES  AT  THE  TOMB  OF  WASHINGTON.        85 

emnity  of  the  scene.  All  hearts  beat  in  unison  with  the 
throbbings  of  the  veteran's  bosom,  as  he  looked  for  the 
last  time  on  the  sepulchre  which  contained  the  ashes  of 
the  first  of  men!  He  spoke  not,  but  appeared  absorbed 
in  the  mighty  recollections  which  the  place  and  the  occa- 
sion inspired." 

During  the  summer  of  i860,  Albert,  Prince  of  Wales, 
and  heir  apparent  to  the  throne  of  England,  visited,  in 
company  with  President  Buchanan,  the  tomb  of  Wash- 
ington. Here  amid  the  gorgeous  beauties  of  a  southern 
summer,  the  grandson  of  George  the  Third  forgot  his 
royalty  in  the  presence  of  departed  worth;  and  bent  his 
knee  in  awe  before  a  mere  handful  of  ashes,  which,  but 
for  the  cold  marble  encompassing  them,  would  be  blown 
to  the  four  winds  of  the  earth.  It  was  a  strange  sight 
to  see  that  bright,  youthful  form  kneeling  before  the 
tomb  of  the  Father  of  his  Country,  and  attesting  his  ap- 
preciation of  the  great  spirit  which  more  than  any  other 
wrested  its  broad  domains  from  him. 

Stealthily  the  years  go  by,  and  we  wist  not  they  are 
passing,  yet  the  muffled  and  hoarse  voice  of  a  century 
astounds  us  with  its  parting.  The  centennial  birthdays 
have  been  celebrated;  we  have  passed  the  hundredth 
anniversary  of  victories  won  and  independence  achieved. 
If  the  glad,  free  spirits  of  the  Chief  and  his  companion 
are  permitted  to  review  their  earthly  pilgrimage,  let  it 
be  a  source  of  gratification  to  us  to  know  they  smile 
upon  a  Republic  of  peace.  Their  bodies  we  guard, 
while  they  crumbled  away  in  the  bosom  of  their  birth- 


S6  MARTHA    WASHINGTON. 

place,  and  as  long  as  a  son  of  America  remains  a  free- 
man, it  will  be  a  well-spring  of  inspiration  to  feel  that 
Virginia  contains  the  Pa/er  Patrics  and  the  woman  im- 
mortalized by  his  love. 

NOTK. — Mis.  Mary  Custis  Lee,  the  daughter  of  George  Washington  Parke 
Custis,  and  granddaughter  of  Martha  Washington,  in  a  letter  to  the  author,  written 
a  short  time  before  her  death,  says  of  this  sketch  of  her  distinguished  ancestor  : 

"  You  will  allow  me  the  privilege  of  making  a  criticism  on  your  book.  ...  In  the  life 
of  Mrs.  Washington,  which  is  very  interesting  and  well  written,  you  say  she  did  not 
pay  much  attention  to  her  household  affairs.  Now,  on  the  contrary,  she  was  re- 
markable for  inspecting  everything  daily,  giving  out  with  her  own  hands  the  meals, 
going  into  her  dairy,  cellar,  etc.  I  have  heard  my  mother  say  she  always  wore  a 
white  dimity  dress  on  those  occasions ;  that  it  was  spotless  and  served  her  for  a  morn- 
ing dress  the  whole  week.  The  one  put  on  for  dinner  answered  the  same  purpose 
the  following  week.  Having  well-trained  servants,  of  course  it  was  not  necessary 
that  she  should,  with  her  own  hands,  perform  any  household  duties,  as  in  these  times 
we  do." 


J 


a  n  0)1  J 


am- 


m 


II. 

ABIGAIL  ADAMS. 

Abigail  Smith,  the  daughter  of  a  New  England  Con- 
gregationalist  minister,  was  born  at  Weymouth,  in  1744. 
Her  father  was  the  settled  pastor  of  that  place  for  more 
than  forty  years,  and  her  grandfather  was  also  a  minister 
of  the  same  denomination  in  a  neiofhborinof  town. 

The  younger  years  of  her  life  were  passed  in  the  quiet 
seclusion  of  her  grandfather's  house;  and  under  the  in- 
structions of  her  grandmother,  she  imbibed  most  of  the 
lessons  which  were  the  most  deeply  impressed  upon  her 
mind.  "I  have  not  forgotten,"  she  says  in  a  letter  to 
her  own  daughter,  in  the  year  1795,  "the  excellent  les- 
sons which  I  received  from  my  grandmother  at  a  very 
early  period  of  life;  I  frequently  think  they  made  a  more 
durable  impression  upon  my  mind  than  those  which  I 
received  from  my  own  parents.  This  tribute  is  due  to 
the  memory  of  those  virtues,  the  sweet  remembrance  of 
which  will  flourish,  though  she  has  long  slept  with  her 
ancestors." 

Separated  from  the  young  members  of  her  own  family, 
and  never  subjected  to  the  ordinary  school  routine,  her 
imaginative  faculties  bade  fair  to  develop  at  the  expense 
of  her  judgment,  but  the  austere  religion  of  her  ances- 
tors, and  the  daily  example  of  strict  compliance  to  forms, 

prevented  the  too  great  indulgence  of  fancy.     She  had 

(87) 


90  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

daughter's  Interest,  as  far  as  mental  culture  was  con- 
cerned, was  generally  ignored.  To  aid  the  mother  in 
manual  household  labor,  and  by  self-denial  and  in- 
creased industry  to  forward  the  welfare  of  the  brothers, 
was  the  most  exalted  height  to  which  any  woman  aspired. 
To  women  there  was  then  no  career  open,  no  life-work 
to  perform  outside  the  narrow  walls  of  home.  Every 
idea  of  self-culture  was  swallowed  up  in  the  wearying 
routine  of  practical  life,  and  what  of  knowledge  they 
obtained,  was  from  the  society  of  the  learned,  and  the 
eagerness  with  which  they  treasured  and  considered  the 
conversations  of  others. 

On  the  26th  of  October,  1764,  Abigail  Smith  was 
married  to  John  Adams.  She  was  at  the  time  twenty 
years  old.  The  match,  although  a  suitable  one  in  many 
respects,  was  not  considered  brilliant,  since  her  ancestors 
were  among  the  most  noted  of  the  best  class  of  their 
day,  and  he  was  the  son  of  a  farmer  of  limited  means, 
and  as  yet  a  lawyer  without  practice.  Mrs.  Adams 
was  the  second  of  three  daughters,  whose  characters 
were  alike  strong  and  remarkable  for  their  intellectual 
force.  The  fortunes  of  two  of  them  confined  its  influ- 
ence to  a  sphere  much  more  limited  than  that  which 
fell  to  the  lot  of  Mrs.  Adams.  Mary,  the  eldest,  was 
married  in  1762  to  Richard  Cranch,  an  English  emi- 
grant, who  subsequently  became  a  Judge  of  the  Court 
of  Common  Pleas  in  Massachusetts.  Elizabeth,  the 
youngest,  was  twice  married  ;  first  to  the  Reverend  John 
Shaw,  minister  of  Haverhill,  and  after  his  death,  to  the 


OBJECTIONS    TO    HER    MARRIAGE.  9 1 

Reverend  Mr.  Peabody,  of  New  Hampshire.  This  an- 
ecdote is  told  in  connection  with  the  marriage  of  Mrs. 
Adams.  When  her  eldest  sister  was  married,  her 
father  preached  to  his  people  from  the  text,  "  And  Mary- 
hath  chosen  that  good  part,  which  shall  not  be  taken 
away  from  her."  The  disapprobation  to  his  second 
daughter's  choice  was  due  to  the  prejudice  entertained 
against  the  profession  of  the  law.  Mr.  Adams,  besides 
being  a  lawyer,  was  the  son  of  a  small  farmer  of  the 
middle  class  in  Braintree,  and  was  thought  scarcely 
good  enough  to  match  with  the  minister's  daughter, 
descended  from  a  line  of  ministers  in  the  colony.  Mr, 
Smith's  parishioners  were  outspoken  in  their  opposition, 
and  he  replied  to  them  immediately,  after  the  marriage 
took  place,  in  a  sermon,  in  which  he  made  pointed 
allusion  to  the  objection  against  lawyers.  His  text  on 
this  occasion  was,  "  For  John  came  neither  eating  bread 
nor  drinking  wine,  and  ye  say.  He  hath  a  devils  Mr. 
Smith,  it  may  be  as  well  to  add,  was  in  the  habit  of 
making  application  of  texts  to  events  which  in  any 
manner  interested  himself  or  his  cong-recration.  In  a 
colony  founded  so  exclusively  upon  motives  of  religious 
zeal  as  Massachusetts  was,  it  necessarily  followed  that 
the  ordinary  distinctions  of  society  were  in  a  great 
degree  subverted,  and  that  the  leaders  of  the  church, 
though  without  worldly  possessions  to  boast  of,  were 
the  most  In  honor  everywhere.  If  a  festive  entertain- 
ment was  meditated,  the  minister  was  sure  to  be  first 
on  the  list  of  those  invited.     If  any  assembly  of  citizens 


92  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

was  held,  he  must  be  there  to  open  the  business  with 
prayer.  If  a  political  measure  was  in  agitation,  he  was 
among  the  first  whose  opinions  were  to  be  consulted. 
He  was  not  infrequently  the  family  physician.  Hence 
the  objection  to  Mr.  Adams  by  her  friends  was  founded 
on  the  fact  that  she  was  the  daughter  and  grand-daugh- 
ter of  a  minister,  and  his  social  superior  according  to  the 
opinions  of  zealous  Christians,  whose  prejudices  were 
extreme  toward  a  calling  they  deemed  hardly  honest. 

Ten  years  of  quiet  home  life  succeeded  her  marriage, 
during  which  time  little  transpired  worthy  of  record. 
"  She  appears  to  have  passed  an  apparently  very  happy 
life,  having  her  residence  in  Braintree,  or  in  Boston, 
according-  as  the  state  of  her  husband's  health,  then 
rather  impaired,  or  that  of  his  professional  practice, 
made  the  change  advisable.  Within  this  period  she 
became  the  mother  of  a  daughter  and  of  three  sons." 

Mr.  Adams  was  elected  one  of  the  delegates  on  the 
part  of  Massachusetts,  instructed  to  meet  persons  cho- 
sen in  the  same  manner  from  the  other  colonies,  for  the 
purpose  of  consulting  in  common  upon  the  course  most 
advisable  to  be  adppted  by  them.  In  the  month  of 
August,  1774,  he  left  home  in  company  with  Samuel 
Adams,  Thomas  Cushings,  and  Robert  Treat  Paine,  to 
go  to  Philadelphia,  at  which  place  the  proposed  assembly 
was  to  be  held.  In  two  months,  Mr.  Adams  was  home 
again.  Congress  met  again  in  May,  1775,  and  Mr. 
Adams  returned  to  Philadelphia  to  attend  it.  The  long 
distance  was  traversed  on  horseback,  and  was  replete 


STUDIES    FRENCH    AT    NIGHT,  93 

with  hardships.  At  Hartford  he  heard  of  the  mem- 
orable incident  at  Lexington,  only  five  days  after  his 
departure  from  Braintree.  Up  to  this  time,  the  trouble 
between  the  two  countries  had  been  a  dispute,  hence- 
forth it  resolved  itself  into  open  hostilities. 

"In  November,  1775."  says  Bancroft,  "Abigail  Smith, 
the  wife  of  John  Adams,  was  at  her  home  near  the  foot 
of  Penn  Hill,  charged  with  the  sole  care  of  their  little 
brood  of  children  ;  managing  their  farm  ;  keeping  house 
with  frugality,  though  opening  her  doors  to  the  house- 
less, and  giving  with  good  will  a  part  of  her  scant 
portion  to  the  poor ;  seeking  w'ork  for  her  own  hands, 
and  ever  busily  occupied,  now  at  the  spinning  wheel, 
now  makinor  amends  for  havinsf  never  been  sent  to 
school  by  learning  French,  though  with  the  aid  of  books 
alone.  Since  the  departure  of  her  husband  for  Con- 
gress, the  arrow  of  death  had  sped  near  her  by  day, 
and  the  pestilence  that  walks  in  darkness  had  entered 
her  humble  mansion.  She  herself  was  still  weak  after 
a  violent  illness  ;  her  house  was  a  hospital  in  every  part ; 
and  such  was  the  distress  of  the  neighborhood,  she 
could  hardly  find  a  well  person  to  assist  in  looking  after 
the  sick:  Her  youngest  son  had  been  rescued  from  the 
grave  by  her  nursing.  Her  own  mother  had  been 
taken  away,  and  after  the  austere  manner  of  her  fore- 
fathers, buried  without  prayer.  Woe  followed  woe,  and 
one  affliction  trod  on  the  heels  of  another.  Winter  was 
hurrying  on ;  during  the  day  family  affairs  took  off  her 
attention,  but  her  long  evenings,  broken  by  the  sound 


92  ABIGAIL   ADAMS. 

was  held,  he  must  be  there  to  open  the  business  with 
prayer.  If  a  political  measure  was  in  agitation,  he  was 
among  the  first  whose  opinions  were  to  be  consulted. 
He  was  not  infrequently  the  family  physician.  Hence 
the  objection  to  Mr.  Adams  by  her  friends  was  founded 
on  the  fact  that  she  was  the  daughter  and  grand-daugh- 
ter of  a  minister,  and  his  social  superior  according  to  the 
opinions  of  zealous  Christians,  whose  prejudices  were 
extreme  toward  a  calling  they  deemed  hardly  honest. 

Ten  years  of  quiet  home  life  succeeded  her  marriage, 
during  which  time  little  transpired  worthy  of  record. 
"  She  appears  to  have  passed  an  apparently  very  happy 
life,  having  her  residence  in  Braintree,  or  in  Boston, 
according  as  the  state  of  her  husband's  health,  then 
rather  impaired,  or  that  of  his  professional  practice, 
made  the  change  advisable.  Within  this  period  she 
became  the  mother  of  a  daughter  and  of  three  sons." 

Mr.  Adams  was  elected  one  of  the  delegates  on  the 
part  of  Massachusetts,  instructed  to  meet  persons  cho- 
sen in  the  same  manner  from  the  other  colonies,  for  the 
purpose  of  consulting  In  common  upon  the  course  most 
advisable  to  be  adopted  by  them.  In  the  month  of 
August,  1774,  he  left  home  in  company  with  Samuel 
Adams,  Thomas  Cushings,  and  Robert  Treat  Paine,  to 
go  to  Philadelphia,  at  which  place  the  proposed  assembly 
was  to  be  held.  In  two  months,  Mr.  Adams  was  home 
again.  Congress  met  again  in  May,  1775,  and  Mr. 
Adams  returned  to  Philadelphia  to  attend  it.  The  long 
distance  was  traversed  on  horseback,  and  was  replete 


STUDIES    FRENCH    AT    NIGHT.  93 

with  hardships.  At  Hartford  he  heard  of  the  mem- 
orable incident  at  Lexington,  only  five  days  after  his 
departure  from  Braintree.  Up  to  this  time,  the  trouble 
between  the  two  countries  had  been  a  dispute,  hence- 
forth it  resolved  itself  into  open  hostilities. 

"In  November,  1775,"  says  Bancroft,  "Abigail  Smith, 
the  wife  of  John  Adams,  was  at  her  home  near  the  foot 
of  Penn  Hill,  charged  with  the  sole  care  of  their  litde 
brood  of  children  ;  managing  their  farm ;  keeping  house 
with  frugality,  though  opening  her  doors  to  the  house- 
less, and  giving  with  good  will  a  part  of  her  scant 
portion  to  the  poor ;  seeking  work  for  her  own  hands, 
and  ever  busily  occupied,  now  at  the  spinning  wheel, 
now  makinof  amends  for  havine"  never  been  sent  to 
school  by  learning  French,  though  with  the  aid  of  books 
alone.  Since  the  departure  of  her  husband  for  Con- 
gress, the  arrow  of  death  had  sped  near  her  by  day, 
and  the  pestilence  that  walks  in  darkness  had  entered 
her  humble  mansion.  She  herself  was  sdll  weak  after 
a  violent  illness ;  her  house  was  a  hospital  in  every  part ; 
and  such  was  the  distress  of  the  neighborhood,  she 
could  hardly  find  a  well  person  to  assist  in  looking  after 
the  sick:  Her  youngest  son  had  been  rescued  from  the 
grave  by  her  nursing.  Her  own  mother  had  been 
taken  away,  and  after  the  austere  manner  of  her  fore- 
fathers, buried  without  prayer.  Woe  followed  woe,  and 
one  affliction  trod  on  the  heels  of  another.  Winter  was 
hurrying  on ;  during  the  day  family  affairs  took  off  her 
attention,  but  her  long  evenings,  broken  by  the  sound 


94  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

of  the  Storm  on  the  ocean,  or  the  enemy's  artillery  at 
Boston,  were  lonesome  and  melancholy.  Ever  in  the 
silent  night  ruminating  on  the  love  and  tenderness  of 
her  departed  parent,  she  needed  the  consolation  of  her 
husband's  presence ;  but  w^hen  she  read  the  king's 
proclamation,  she  willingly  gave  up  her  nearest  friend 
exclusively  to  his  perilous  duties,  and  sent  him  her 
cheering  message :  '  This  intelligence  will  make  a  plain 
path  for  you,  though  a  dangerous  one.  I  could  not 
join  to-day  in  the  petitions  of  our  worthy  pastor  for 
a  reconciliation  between  our  no  longer  parent  state,  but 
tyrant  state,  and  these  colonies.  Let  us  separate  ;  they 
are  unworthy  to  be  our  brethren.  Let  us  renounce 
them ;  and  instead  of  supplications,  as  formerlj',  for  their 
prosperity  and  happiness,  let  us  beseech  the  Almighty 
to  blast  their  counsels  and  bring  to  naught  all  their 
devices.' " 

Such  words  of  patriotism  falling  from  the  lips  of  a 
woman  who  had  just  buried  three  members  of  her 
household,  one  her  own  mother,  and  who  was  alone 
with  her  four  little  children  within  sicrht  of  the  can- 
nonading  at  Boston,  discovers  a  mind  strong,  and  a 
spirit  fearless  and  brave  under  scenes  of  harrowing 
distress. 

Now  she  was  alone,  and  she  writes  to  her  husband, 
"  The  desolation  of  war  is  not  so  distressino'  as  the  havoc 
made  by  the  pestilence.  Some  poor  parents  are 
mourning  the  loss  of  three,  four,  and  five  children,  and 
some  families  are   wholly  stripped  of  every  member." 


WORDS    OF    PATRIOTISM.  95 

December  found  Mr.  Adams  once  more  at  home  to 
cheer  his  suffering  family,  but  Congress  demanded  his 
presence,  and  after  a  stay  of  one  month,  he  returned 
again  to  the  halls  of  the  nation.  March  came,  and  her 
anxious,  solitary  life  was  in  nowise  brightened.  The 
distance,  in  those  days  of  slow  travel  and  bad  roads, 
from  Boston  to  Philadelphia  was  immense,  and  letters 
were  precious  articles  hard  to  receive.  In  speaking  of 
the  anticipated  attack  on  Boston,  she  says :  "  It  has 
been  said  to-morrow  and  to-morrow ;  but  when  the 
dreadful  to-morrow  will  be  I  know  not."  Yet  even  as 
she  wrote,  the  first  peal  of  the  American  guns  rang  out 
their  dissonance  on  the  chilling  night  winds,  and  the 
house  shook  and  trembled  from  cellar  to  o-arret.  It 
was  no  time  for  calm  thoughts  now,  and  she  left  her 
letter  unfinished  to  oo  out  and  watch  the  lurid  lights 
that  flashed  and  disappeared  in  the  distance.  Next 
morning  she  walked  to  Penn's  Hill,  where  she  sat 
listening  to  the  amazing  roar,  and  watching  the  British 
shells  as  they  fell  round  about  the  camps  of  her  friends. 
Her  home  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  Avas  all  her  earthly 
wealth,  and  the  careful  husbanding  of  each  year's  crop 
her  only  income ;  yet  while  she  ever  and  anon  cast  her 
eye  upon  it,  the  thoughts  that  welled  into  words  were 
not  of  selfish  repinings,  but  of  proud  expressions  of 
high-souled  patriotism.  "The  cannonade  is  from  our 
army,"  she  continues,  "and  the  sight  is  one  of  the 
grandest  in  nature,  and  is  of  the  true  species  of  the 
sublime.     'Tis   now   an    incessant   roar.     To-nipfht   we 


96  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

shall  realize  a  more  terrible  scene  still ;  I  wish  myself 
with  you  out  of  hearing,  as  I  cannot  assist  them,  but  I 
hope  to  give  you  joy  of  Boston,  even  if  it  is  in  ruins 
before  I  send  this  away."  But  events  were  not  ordered 
as  she  feared,  and  the  result  was  more  glorious  than  she 
dared  hope.  All  the  summer  the  army  lay  encamped 
around  Boston,  and  in  early  fall  her  husband  came 
home  again,  after  an  absence  of  nearly  a  year.  Yet  his 
coming  brought  her  little  satisfaction,  since  it  was  to  an- 
nounce the  sad  truth  that  he  had  been  chosen  Minister 
to  France.  Could  he  take  his  wife  and  little  ones  ?  was 
the  oft-recurring  question.  A  small  and  not  very  good 
vessel  had  been  ordered  to  carry  him:  the  British  fleet 
knew  this,  and  were  on  the  watch  to  capture  it.  On 
every  account  it  was  deemed  best  he  should  go  alone, 
but  he  finally  concluded  to  take  his  eldest  son,  John 
Quincy  Adams,  to  bear  him  company,  and  in  February, 
1778,  sailed  for  Europe. 

The  loneliness  of  the  faithful  wife  can  hardly  be 
understood  by  those  unacquainted  with  the  horrors  of 
war.  Yet  doubtless  there  are  many,  very  many,  who 
in  the  dark  gloom  of  the  civil  war  can  record  similar 
feelings  of  agony,  and  can  trace  a  parallel  in  the  soli- 
tary musings  of  this  brave  matron.  The  ordinary 
occupations  of  the  female  sex  have  ever  confined  them 
to  a  very  limited  sphere,  and  there  is  seldom  an  occa- 
sion when  they  can  with  propriety  extend  their  exer- 
tions beyond  the  domestic  hearth.  Only  through  the 
imagination    can    they   give   unlimited    scope    to    those 


AN    ENVIABLE    RECORD.  97 

powers  which  the  world  until  recently  has  never  under- 
stood, and  which  are  even  now  but' dimly  defined.  Had 
mankind  given  them  the  privileges  of  a  liberal 
education,  and  freedom  to  carve  their  own  destiny,  to 
what  dazzling  heights  would  a  mind  so  naturally  gifted 
as  Mrs.  Adams',  have  attained?  Circumscribed  as  her 
lot  was,  she  has  left  upon  the  pages  of  history  an 
enviable  record,  and  while  Americans  forget  not  to  do 
honor  to  her  husband's  zeal  and  greatness,  her  memory 
lends  a  richer  perfume,  and  sheds  a  radiance  round  the 
incidents  of  a  life  upon  which  she  wielded  so  beneficial 
an  influence. 

Ofttimes  weather-bound  and  compelled  to  remain  in- 
doors for  days,  with  no  society  save  her  children  and 
domestics,  it  is  not  stranore  that  she  should  be  lonelr. 
Nor  could  her  mind  dwell  upon  any  pleasing  anticipa- 
tions for  the  future.  Her  husband  three  thousand 
miles  away,  a  hostile  army  encompassing  the  countr,', 
poor  and  forlorn,  she  yet  so  managed  and  controlled 
her  little  estate,  that  it  served  to  support  her,  and  in 
old  age,  to  prove  the  happy  asylum  of  her  honored 
family.  Mr.  Adams  knew  her  exposed  condition,  yet 
trusted  to  her  judgment  to  protect  herself  and  little 
ones.  On  a  former  occasion  he  had  written  to  her 
"  in  case  of  danger  to  fly  to  the  woods,"  and  now  he 
could  only  reiterate  the  same  advice,  at  the  same  time 
feeling  that  she  was  strong  and  resolute  to  sustain 
herself  Six  months  passed,  and  Mrs.  Adams  writes  to 
him:  "I  have  never  received  a  syllable  from  you  or  my 


gS  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

dear  son,  and  it  is  five  months  since  I  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  conveying  a  Hne  to  you.  Yet  I  know  not  but 
you  are  less  a  sufferer  than  you  would  be  to  hear  from 
us,  to  know  our  distresses,  and  yet  be  unable  to  relieve 
them.  The  universal  cry  for  bread  to  a  humane  heart 
is  painful  beyond  description."  Mr.  Adams  returned  to 
his  family  after  an  absence  of  eighteen  months,  but  no 
sooner  was  he  established  in  his  happy  home,  than  he 
was  ordered  to  Great  Britain  to  negotiate  a  peace. 
Two  of  his  sons  accompanied  him  on  this  trip.  He 
went  over  night  to  Boston  to  embark  early  next  day, 
and  the  sad  heart  left  behind  again,  found  relief  in  the 
following  touching  words :  "  My  habitation,  how  dis- 
consolate it  looks  !  my  table,  I  sit  down  to  it,  but  cannot 
swallow  my  food !  Oh,  why  was  I  born  with  so  much 
sensibility,  and  why,  possessing  it,  have  I  so  often  been 
called  to  struggle  with  it  ?  Were  I  sure  you  would  not 
be  gone,  I  could  not  withstand  the  temptation  of  coming 
to  town  though  my  heart  would  suffer  over  again  the 
cruel  torture  of  separation."  Soon  after  this  time,  she 
wrote  to  her  eldest  son  in  reo^ard  to  his  extreme  re- 
luctance  at  again  crossing  the  ocean,  and  for  its  per- 
spicuity and  terseness,  for  the  loftiness  of  its  sentiments, 
and  the  sound  logical  advice  in  which  it  abounds,  ranks 
itself  among  the  first  literary  effusions  of  the  century : 

">«^,  1778. 

"My  Dear  Son:    'Tis  almost  four  months  since  you 
left  your  native  land  and  embarked  upon  the  mighty 


A    MOTHER  S    ADVICE.  99 

waters  In  quest  of  a  foreign  country.  Although  I  have  not 
particularly  written  to  you  since,  yet  you  may  be  assured 
you  have  constantly  been  upon  my  heart  and  mind. 

"It  is  a  very  difficult  task,  my  dear  son,  for  a  tender 
parent,  to  bring  her  mind  to  part  with  a  child  of  your 
years,  going  to  a  distant  land ;  nor  could  I  have  ac- 
quiesced in  such  a  separation  under  any  other  care  than 
that  of  the  most  excellent  parent  and  guardian  who  ac- 
companied you.  You  have  arrived  at  years  capable  of 
improving  under  the  advantages  you  will  be  likely  to 
have,  if  you  do  but  properly  attend  to  them.  They  are 
talents  put  into  your  hands,  of  which  an  account  will  be 
required  of  you  hereafter;  and,  being  possessed  of  one, 
two,  or  four,  see  to  it  that  }'ou  double  your  number. 

"The  most  amiable  and  most  useful  disposition  in  a 
young  mind  is  diffidence  of  itself;  and  this  should  lead 
you  to  seek  advice  and  instruction  from  him  who  is  your 
natural  guardian,  and  will  always  counsel  and  direct  you 
in  the  best  manner,  both  for  your  present  and  future 
happiness.  You  are  in  possession  of  a  natural  good 
understanding,  and  of  spirits  unbroken  by  adversity  and 
untamed  with  care.  Improve  your  understanding  by 
acquiring  useful  knowledge  and  virtue,  such  as  will 
render  you  an  ornament  to  society,  an  honor  to  your 
country,  and  a  blessing  to  your  parents.  Great  learn- 
ing and  superior  abilities,  should  you  ever  possess  them, 
will  be  of  little  value  and  small  estimation,  unless  virtue, 
honor,  truth,  and  integrity  are  added  to  them.  Adhere 
to  those  religious  sentiments  and  principles  which  were 


lOO  ABIGAIL   ADAMS. 

early  instilled  into  your  mind,  and  remember  that  you 
are  accountable  to  your  Maker  for  all  your  words  and 
actions.  Let  me  enjoin  it  upon  you  to  attend  constantly 
and  steadfastly  to  the  precepts  and  instructions  of  your 
father,  as  you  value  the  happiness  of  your  mother  and 
your  own  welfare.  His  care  and  attention  to  you  ren- 
der many  things  unnecessary  for  me  to  write,  which  I 
might  otherwise  do;  but  the  inadvertency  and  heedless- 
ness of  youth  require  line  upon  line  and  precept  upon 
precept,  and,  when  enforced  by  the  joint  efforts  of  both 
parents,  will,  I  hope,  have  a  due  influence  upon  your 
conduct;  for,  dear  as  you  are  to  me,  I  would  mucli 
rather  you  should  have  found  your  grave  in  the  ocean 
you  have  crossed,  or  that  any  untimely  death  crop  you 
in  your  infant  years,  than  see  you  an  immoral,  profligate, 
or  o-raceless  child. 

"You  have  entered  early  in  life  upon  the  great  theatre 
of  the  world,  which  is  full  of  temptations  and  vice  of 
every  kind.  You  are  not  wholly  unacquainted  with  his- 
tory, in, which  you  have  read  of  crimes  which  your  inex- 
perienced mind  could  scarcely  believe  credible.  You 
have  been  taught  to  think  of  them  with  horror,  and  to 
view  vice  as 

"  'A  monster  of  so  frightful  mien, 
That,  to  be  hated,  needs  but  to  be  seen.' 

,  Yet  you  must  keep  a  strict  guard  upon  yourself,  or  the 
odious  monster  will  lose  its  terror  by  becoming  familiar 
to  you.  The  modern  history'  of  our  own  times  furnishes 
as  black  a  list  of  crimes  as  can  be  paralleled  in  ancient 


A    MOTHERS    ADVICE.  lOI 

times,  even  if  we  go  back  to  Nero,  Caligula,  Caesar 
Borgia.  Young  as  you  are,  the  cruel  war  into  which  we 
have  been  compelled  by  the  haughty  tyrant  of  Britain 
and  the  bloody  emissaries  of  his  vengeance,  may  stamp 
upon  your  mind  this  certain  truth,  that  the  welfare  and 
prosperity  of  all  countries,  communities,  and,  I  may  add, 
individuals,  depend  upon  their  morals.  That  nation 
to  which  we  were  once  united,  as  it  has  departed  from 
justice,  eluded  and  subverted  the  wise  laws  which  for- 
merly governed  it,  and  suffered  the  worst  of  crimes  to 
go  unpunished,  has  lost  its  valor,  wisdom,  and  humanity, 
and,  from  being  the  dread  and  terror  of  Europe,  has 
sunk  into  derision  and  infamy. 

"But,  to  quit  political  subjects,  I  have  been  greatly 
anxious  for  your  safety,  having  never  heard  of  the 
frigate  since  she  sailed,  till,  about  a  week  ago,  a  New 
York  paper  informed  that  she  was  taken  and  carried  into 
Plymouth.  I  did  not  fully  credit  this  report,  though  it 
gave  me  much  uneasiness.  I  yesterday  heard  that  a 
French  vessel  was  arrived  at  Portsmouth,  which,  brought 
news  of  the  safe  arrival  of  the  Boston;  but  this  wants 
confirmation.  I  hope  it  will  not  be  long  before  I  shall 
be  assured  of  your  safety.  You  must  write  me  an  ac- 
count of  your  voyage,  of  your  situation,  and  of  every 
thing  entertaining  you  can  recollect. 

"Be  assured,  I  am  most  affectionately 

"Your  mother,  Abigail  Adams." 

The  Government  was   organized    under  its  present 


I02  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

Constitution  in  April,  i  789,  and  Mr.  Adams  was  elected 
Vice-President.  He  established  himself  in  New  York, 
and  from  there  Mrs.  Adams  wrote  to  her  sister,  "that 
she  would  return  to  Braintree  during  the  recess  of  Con- 
gress, but  the  season  of  the  year  renders  the  attempt 
impracticable."  She  speaks  in  one  of  her  letters  of  the 
drawing-rooms  held  by  Mrs.  Washington,  and  the  many 
invitations  she  received  to  entertainments.  After  a  resi- 
dence of  one  year  in  New  York,  the  seat  of  government 
was  removed  to  Philadelphia.  She  says  in  a  letter  to 
her  dauohter,  "that  she  dined  with  the  President  in  com- 
pany  with  the  ministers  and  ladies  of  the  court,"  and  that 
"he  asked  very  affecdonately  after  her  and  the  children," 
and  "at  the  table  picked  the  sugar  plums  from  a  cake 
and  requested  me  to  take  them  for  Master  John."  In 
February,  1797,  Mr.  Adams  succeeded  President  Wash- 
ington, and  from  Braintree  she  wrote  to  her  husband 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  all  her  noble  effusions: 

"  '  The  sun  is  dressed  in  brightest  beams 
To  give  ihy  honors  to  the  day.' 

"And  may  it  prove  an  auspicious  prelude  to  each 
ensuing  season.  You  have  this  day  to  declare  your- 
self head  of  a  nation.  'And  now,  O  Lord  my  God, 
thou  hast  made  thy  servant  ruler  over  the  people ; 
give  unto  him  an  understanding  heart,  that  he  rnay 
know  how  to  go  out  and  come  in  before  this  great  peo- 
ple ;  that  he  may  discern  between  good  and  bad.  For 
who  is  able  to  judge  this  thy  so  great  a  people  : '  wer"^ 


REMOVAL   TO    WASHINGTON.  IO3 

the  words  of  a  royal  sovereign,  and  not  less  applicable 
to  him  who  is  invested  with  the  Chief  Magistracy  of 
a  nation,  though  he  wear  not  a  crown  nor  the  robes  of 
royalty.  My  thoughts  and  my  meditations  are  with 
you,  though  personally  absent ;  and  my  petitions  to 
heaven  are  that  '  the  things  which  make  for  peace  may 
not  be  hidden  from  your  eyes.'  My  feelings  are  not 
those  of  pride  or  ostentation  upon  the  occasion.  They 
are  solemnized  by  a  sense  of  the  obligations,  the  im- 
portant trusts,  and  numerous  duties  connected  with  it. 
That  you  may  be  enabled  to  discharge  them  with  honor 
to  yourself,  with  justice  and  impartiality  to  your 
country,  and  with  satisfaction  to  this  great  people,  shall 
be  the  daily  prayer  of  yours — " 

Soon  as  the  funeral  rites  of  Mrs.  Adams,  the  ven- 
erable mother  of  President  Adams,  were  performed, 
and  the  sad  leave-takings  over,  Mrs.  Adams  set  out  to 
join  her  husband  at  Philadelphia,  from  whence  the  seat 
of  government  was  removed  in  June,  1800,  to  Wash- 
ington City. 

Her  impression  of  the  place  is  graphically  described 
in  the  following  letter  to  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Smith : 

"Washington,  K'ovetnber  21st,  1800. 

"  My  Dear  Child  :— 

"I  arrived  here  on  Sunday  last,  and  without  meeting 
with  any  accident  worth  noticing,  except  losing  our- 
selves when  we  left  Baltimore,  and  going  eight  or  nine 
miles  on  the  Frederick  road,  by  which  means  we  were 


I04  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

obliged  to  go  the  other  eight  through  woods,  where 
we  wandered  two  hours  without  finding  a  guide  or  tlie 
path.  Fortunately,  a  straggling  black  came  up  with 
us,  and  we  engaged  him  as  a  guide  to  extricate  us  out 
of  our  difficulty.  But  woods  are  all  you  see  from  Bal- 
timore until  you  reach  the  city, — which  is  only  so  in 
name.  Here  and  there  is  a  small  cot,  without  a  glass 
window,  interspersed  amongst  the  forests,  through  which 
you  travel  miles  without'  seeing  any  human  being.  In 
the  city  there  are  buildings  enough,  if  they  were  com- 
pact and  finished,  to  accommodate  Congress  and  those 
attached  to  it ;  but  as  they  are,  and  scattered  as  they 
are,  I  see  no  great  comfort  for  them.  The  river,  which 
runs  up  to  Alexandria,  is  in  full  view  of  my  window,  and 
I  see  the  vessels  as  they  pass  and  repass.  The  house  is 
upon  a  grand  and  superb  scale,  requiring  about  thirty 
servants  to  attend  and  keep  the  apartments  in  proper 
order,  and  perform  the  ordinary  business  of  the  house 
and  stables :  an  establishment  very  well  proportioned 
t:)  the  President's  salary.  The  lighting  the  apartments, 
from  the  kitchen  to  parlors  and  chambers,  is  a  tax  in- 
deed ;  and  the  fires  we  are  obliged  to  keep  to  secure  us 
from  daily  agues,  is  another  very  cheering  comfort.  To 
assist  us  in  this  great  casde,  and  render  less  attendance 
necessary,  bells  are  wholly  wanting,  not  one  single  one 
being  hung  through  the  whole  house,  and  promises  are 
all  you  can  obtain.  This  is  so  great  an  inconvenience, 
that  I  know  not  what  to  do,  or  how  to  do.  The  ladles 
from  Georgetown  and  in  the  city  have  many  of  them 


NO    FIREWOOD    FOR    THE    MANSION.  IO5 

visited  me.  Yesterday  I  returned  fifteen  visits, — but 
such  a  place  as  Georgetown  appears, — why  our  Milton 
is  beautiful.  But  no  comparisons; — if  they  will  put 
me  up  some  bells,  and  let  me  have  wood  enough  to 
keep  fires,  I  design  to  be  pleased.  I  could  content 
myself  almost  anywhere  three  months ;  but  surrounded 
with  forests,  can  you  believe  that  wood  is  not  to  be  had, 
because  people  cannot  be  found  to  cut  and  cart  it? 
Briesler  entered  into  a  contract  with  a  man  to  supply 
him  with  wood  ;  a  small  part,  a  few  cords  only,  has  he 
been  able  to  get.  Most  of  that  was  expended  to  dry 
the  walls  of  the  house  before  we  came  in,  and  yesterday 
the  man  told  him  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  procure 
ii  to  be  cut  and  carted.  He  has  had  recourse  to  coals: 
I  at  we  cannot  fjet  crrates  made  and  set.  We  have 
ii.'ideed  come  into  a  new  country. 

"You  must  keep  all  this  to  yourself,  and  when  asked 
how  I  like  it,  say  that  I  write  you  the  situation  is  beauti- 
fiil,  which  is  true.  The  house  is  made  habitable,  but 
t'lere  is  not  a  single  apartment  finished,  and  all  within- 
side,  except  the  plastering,  has  been  done  since  Briesler 
came.  We  have  not  the  least  fence,  yard,  or  other  con- 
venience, without,  and  the  great  unfinished  audience- 
room  I  make  a  drying  room  of,  to  hang  up  the  clothes 
in.  The  principal  stairs  are  not  up,  and  will  not  be  this 
winter.  Six  chambers  are  made  comfortable;  two  are 
occupied  by  the  President  and  Mr.  Shaw;  two  lower 
rooms,  one  for  a  common  parlor  and  one  for  a  levee 
room.      Up-stairs  there  is  the  oval  room,  which  is  de- 


I06  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

signed  for  the  drawing-room,  and  has  the  crimson  furni- 
ture  in  it.  It  is  a  very  handsome  room  now,  but  whe<i 
completed  will  be  beautiful.  If  the  twelve  years,  in  which 
this  place  has  been  considered  as  the  future  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, had  been  improved,  as  they  would  have  been 
if  in  New  England,  very  many  of  the  present  inconven- 
iences would  have  been  removed.  It  is  a  beautiful  spot, 
capable  of  every  improvement,  and  the  more  I  view  it, 
the  more  I  am  delighted  with  it.  Since  I  sat  down  to 
write,  I  have  been  called  down  to  a  servant  from  Mount 
Vernon,  with  a  billet  from  Major  Custis,  and  a  haunch 
of  venison,  and  a  kind,  congratulatory  letter  from  Mrs. 
Lewis,  upon  my  arrival  in  the  city,  with  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton's love,  inviting  me  to  Mount  Vernon,  where,  health 
permitting,  I  will  go,  before  I  leave  this  place.  .  .  .  Two 
articles  are  much  distressed  for:  the  one  is  bells,  but 
the  more  important  one  is  w^ood.  Yet  you  cannot  see 
wood  for  trees.  No  arrangement  has  been  made,  but 
by  promises  never  performed,  to  supply  the  newcomers 
with  fuel.  Of  the  promises,  Briesler  had  received  his 
full  share.  He  had  procured  nine  cords  of  wood:  be- 
tween six  and  seven  of  that  was  kindly  burnt  up  to  dry 
the  walls  of  the  house,  which  ought  to  have  been  done  by 
the  commissioners,  but  which,  if  left  to  them,  would  have 
remained  undone  to  this  day.  Congress  poured  in,  but 
shiver,  shiver.  No  wood-cutters  nor  carters  to  be  had 
at  any  rate.  We  are  now  indebted  to  a  Pennsylvania 
watron  to  brin^f  us,  throuQrb  the  first  clerk  in  the  Treas- 
ury  Office,  one  cord  and  a  half  of  wood,  which  is  all  we 


AN    UNFINISHED    HOME.  IO7 

have  for  this  house,  where  twelve  fires  are  constantly 
required,  and  where,  we  are  told,  the  roads  will  soon  be 
so  bad  that  it  cannot  be  drawn.  Briesler  procured  two 
hundred  bushels  of  coal,  or  we  must  have  suffered. 
This  is  the  situation  of  almost  every  person.  The  public 
officers  have  sent  to  Philadelphia  for  wood-cutters  and 
wagons. 

•  "The  vessel  which  has  my  clothes  and  other  matter  is 
not  arrived.  The  ladies  are  impatient  for  a  drawing- 
room;  I  have  no  looking-glasses,  but  dwarfs,  for  this 
house;  nor  a  twentieth  part  lamps  enough  to  light  it 
Many  things  were  stolen,  many  were  broken,  by  the  re- 
moval; amongst  the  number,  my  tea-china  is  more  than 
half  missing.  Georgetown  affords  nothing.  My  rooms 
are  very  pleasant,  and  warm,  whilst  the  doors  of  the  hall 
are  closed. 

"  You  can  scarce  believe  that  here  in  this  wilderness- 
city,  I  should  find  myself  so  occupied  as  it  is.  My  visi- 
tors, some  of  them,  come  three  and  four  miles.  The 
return  of  one  of  them  is  the  work  of  one  day.  Most  of 
the  ladies  reside  in  Georgetown,  or  in  scattered  parts  of 
the  city  at  two  and  three  miles  distance.  We  have  all 
been  very  well  as  yet;  if  we  can  by  any  means  get  wood, 
we  shall  not  let  our  fires  go  out,  but  it  is  at  a  price  in- 
deed; from  four  dollars  it  has  risen  to  nine.  Some  say  it 
will  fall,  but  there  must  be  more  industry  .than  is  to  be 
found  here  to  bring  half  enough  to  the  market  for  the 
consumption  of  the  inhabitants." 

The  Hon.  John  Cotton  Smith,  a  member  of  Congress 


loS  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

from  Connecticut,  describing  Washington  as  it  appeared 
to  him  on  his  arrival  there,  wrote  as  follows: 

"Our  approach  to  the  city  was  accompanied  with  sen- 
sations not  easily  described.  One  wing  of  the  Capitol 
only  had  been  erected,  which,  with  the  President's 
House,  a  mile  distant  from  it,  both  constructed  with 
white  sandstone,  were  striking  objects  in  dismal  contrast 
with  the  scene  around  them.  Instead  of  recoo-nizinor 
the  avenues  and  streets  portrayed  on  the  plan  of  the 
city,  not  one  was  visible  unless  we  except  a  road,  with 
two  buildings  on  each  side  of  it,  called  the  New  Jersey 
Avenue.  The  Pennsylvania,  leading  as  laid  down  on 
paper,  from  the  Capitol  to  the  Presidential  mansion,  was 
then  nearly  the  whole  distance  a  deep  morass,  covered 
with  alder  bushes,  which  were  cut  through  the  width  of 
the  intended  Avenue  the  then  ensuing  w'inter.  .  .  .  The 
roads  in  every  direction  were  muddy  and  unimproved; 
a  side-walk  was  attempted  in  one  instance  by  a  covering 
formed  of  the  chips  of  the  stones  which  had  been  hewed 
for  the  Capitol.  It  extended  but  a  little  way,  and  was 
of  little  value,  for  in  dry  weather  the  sharp  fragments 
cut  our  shoes,  and  in  wet  weather  covered  them  with 
white  mortar;  in  short,  it  was  a  new  settlement.  The 
houses,  with  two  or  three  exceptions,  had  been  very  re- 
cently erected,  and  the  operation  greatly  hurried  in 
view  of  the  approaching  transfer  of  the  national  govern- 
ment. A  laughable  desire  w^as  manifested  by  what  few 
citizens  and  residents  there  were,  to  render  our  condi- 
tion as  pleasant  as  circumstances  would  permit.     Not- 


A   WILDERNESS    CITY.  IO9 

withstanding  the  unfavorable  aspect  which  Washington 
presented  on  our  arrival,  I  cannot  sufficiently  express 
my  admiration  of  Its  local  position.  From  the  Capitol 
you  have  a  distinct  view  of  its  fine,  undulating  surface, 
situated  at  the  confluence  of  the  Potomac  and  its  East- 
ern Branch,  the  wide  expanse  of  that  majestic  river  to 
the  bend  at  Mount  Vernon,  the  cities  of  Alexandria  and 
Georgetown,  and  the  cultivated  fields  and  blue  hills  of 
Maryland  and  Virginia  on  either  side  of  the  river,  the 
whole  constituting  a  prospect  of  surpassing  beauty  and 
grandeur.  The  city  has  also  the  inestimable  advantage 
of  delightful  water,  in  many  instances  flowing  from 
copious  springs,  and  always  attainable  by  digging  to  a 
moderate  depth. 

"Some  portions  of  the  city  are  forty  miles  from  Bal- 
timore. The  situation  Is  indeed  beautiful  and  pleas- 
ant. 

"The  President's  house  was  built  to  be  looked  at  by 
visitors  and  strangers,  and  will  render  its  occupants  an 
object  of  ridicule  with  some  and  of  pity  with  others.  It 
must  be  cold  and  damp  in  winter,  and  cannot  be  kept  in 
tolerable  order  without  a  regiment  of  servants.  There 
are  but  few  houses  at  any  one  place,  and  most  of  them 
small,  miserable  huts,  which  present  an  awful  contrast  to 
the  public  buildings.  The  people  are  poor,  and  as  far 
as  I  can  judge,  they  live  like  fishes,  by  eating  each 
other." 

The  first  New- Year's  reception  at  the  White  House 
was  held  by  President  Adams  In   1801.     The  house  was 


IIO  ABIGAIL   ADAMS. 

only  partially  furnished,  and  Mrs.  Adams  used  the  oval 
room  up-stairs,  now  the  library,  as  a  drawing-room. 
The  formal  etiquette  established  by  Mrs.  Washington 
at  New  York  and  Philadelphia  was  kept  up  in  the  wil- 
derness-city by  Mrs.  Adams. 

At  this  time  the  health  of  Mrs.  Adams,  which  had 
never  been  very  firm,  began  decidedly  to  fail.  Her 
residence  at  Philadelphia  had  not  been  favorable,  as  it 
had  subjected  her  to  the  attack  of  an  intermittent  fever, 
from  the  effects  of  which  she  was  never  afterward  per- 
fectly free.  The  desire  to  enjoy  the  bracing  air  of  her 
native  climate,  as  well  as  to  keep  together  the  private 
property  of  her  husband,  upon  which  she  early  foresaw 
that  he  would  be  obliged  to  rely  for  their  support  in 
their  last  years,  prompted  her  to  reside  much  of  her  time 
at  Ouincy. 

Thus  closed  Mrs.  Adams'  life  in  Washington,  of  which 
she  has  given  a  picture  in  her  letter  to  her  daughter; 
and  spring  found  her  once  more  in  her  Massachusetts 
home,  recuperating  her  failing  health.  She  lived  in 
Washington  only  four  months — and  yet  she  is  insepara- 
bly connected  with  it.  She  was  mistress  of  the  White 
House  less  than  half  a  year,  but  she  stamped  it  with  her 
individuality,  and  none  have  lived  there  since  who  have 
not  looked  upon  her  as  the  model  and  guide.  It  is  not 
asserting  too  much,  to  observe  that  the  first  occupant 
of  that  historic  house  stands  without  a  rival,  and  re- 
ceives a  meed  of  praise  awarded  to  no  other  American 
woman. 


SACRIFICING.  I  I  I 

In  the  midst  of  public  or  private  troubles,  the 
buoyant  spirit  of  Mrs.  Adams  never  forsook  her.  "  I 
am  a  mortal  enemy,"  she  wrote  upon  one  occasion  to 
her  husband,  "  to  anything  but  a  cheerful  countenance 
and  a  merry  heart,  which  Solomon  tells  us  does  good  like 
a  medicine,"  "This  spirit,"  says  her  son,  "  contributed 
greatly  to  lift  up  his  heart,  when  surrounded  by  diffi- 
culties and  dangers,  exposed  to  open  hostility,  and 
secret  detraction,  and  resisting  a  torrent  of  invective, 
such  as  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether  any  other 
individual  in  public  station  in  the  United  States  has  ever 
tried  to  stem.  It  was  this  spirit  which  soothed  his 
wounded  feelings  when  the  country,  which  he  had 
served  in  the  full  consciousness  of  the  perfect  honesty 
of  his  motives,  threw  him  off,  and  signified  its  preference 
for  other  statesmen.  There  are  oftener,  even  in  this 
life,  more  compensations  for  the  severest  of  the 
troubles  that  afflict  mankind,  than  we  are  apt  to  think." 

The  sacrifices  made  by  Mrs.  Adams  during  the  long 
era  of  war,  pestilence,  and  famine,  deserves  and  should 
receive  from  a  nation's  ofratltude  a  monument  as  hio^h 
and  massive  as  her  illustrious  husband's. 

Let  it  be  reared  in  the  hearts  of  the  women  of 
America,  who  may  proudly  claim  her  as  a  model,  and 
let  her  fame  be  transmitted  to  remotest  posterity — the 
"Portia"  of  the  rebellious  provinces. 

Statues  and  monuments  belong  rather  to  a  bygone 
than  a  present  time,  and  are  indicative  of  a  less  degree 
of  culture  than   we   of  this   century  boast.     The  pages 


112  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

of  history  are  the  truest,  safest  sarcophagi  of  great- 
ness, and  embalm  in  their  records  the  Hves  of  the 
master-workers.  Not  in  marble  or  bronze  be  her 
memory  perpetuated,  for  we  need  no  such  hieroglyphics 
in  this  country  of  free  schools.  Place  her  history  in  the 
libraries  of  America,  and  the  children  of  freedom  will 
live  over  her  deeds.  To  the  crumbling  monarchies  of 
Europe  on  their  way  to  dissolution,  it  may  be  necessary 
to  erect  statues  of  past  greatness,  that  some  shadow  of 
their  nothingness  may  remain  as  warnings;  but  the  men 
and  women  of  revolutionary  memory  are  become  a  part 
and  parcel  of  this  government,  whose  very  existence 
must  be  wiped  from  the  face  of  the  earth  ere  one  jot  or 
tittle  of  their  fame  is  lost. 

In  viewing  the  character  of  Mrs.  Adams,  as  it  looms 
up  in  the  pages  of  the  past,  we  can  but  regret  that  she 
occupied  no  more  enlarged  sphere.  The  woman  who 
could  reply  as  she  did  to  the  question,  (*'  Had  you 
known  that  Mr.  Adams  would  have  remained  so  longf 
abroad,  would  you  have  consented  that  he  should  have 
gone?  ") — could  have  filled  any  position  in  civil  life.  "If 
I  had  known,"  she  replied,  after  a  moment's  hesitation, 
"that  Mr.  Adams  could  have  effected  what  he  has  done, 
I  would  not  only  have  submitted  to  the  absence  I  have 
endured,  painful  as  it  has  been,  but  I  would  not  have 
opposed  it,  even  though  three  more  years  should  be 
added  to  the  number.  I  feel  a  pleasure  in  being  able  to 
sacrifice  my  selfish  passions  to  the  general  good,  and  in 
Imitating  the  example  which  has  taught  me  to  consider 


HER    STRONG    CHARACTER.  I  I  3 

myself  and  family  but  as  the  small  dust  of  the  balance, 
when  compared  with  the  great  community." 

With  the  marked  characteristics  which  made  her 
determined  and  resolute,  she  could  have  occupied  any 
post  of  honor  requiring  a  strong  mind  and  clear  per- 
ceptions of  right;  cut  off,  as  was  her  sex,  from  partici- 
pation in  the  struggle  around  her ;  confined  by  custom 
to  the  lonely  and  wearisome  monotony  of  her  country 
home,  she  nevertheless  stamped  her  character  upon  the 
hearts  of  her  countrymen,  and  enrolled  her  name 
among  its  workers.  Had  she  been  called  into  any  of 
the  departments  of  State,  or  required  to  fill  any  place 
of  trust,  hers  would  have  been  an  enviable  name  ;  even 
as  it  is,  she  occupies  the  foreground  of  the  Revolution- 
ary history,  and  so  powerful  were  the  energies  of  her 
soul,  that. biographers  and  historians  have  deemed  it 
worth  their  while  to  deny,  in  lengthy  terms,  her  in- 
fluence over  her  husband,  and  exert  every  argument 
to  prove  that  she  in  no  way  controlled  his  actions. 
The  opinions  of  men  differ  on  this  point,  and  the  stu- 
dents of  American  biographies  decide  the  questions 
from  their  own  stand-points.  Yet  who  will  not  venture 
to  assert  that  with  the  culture  bestowed  upon  her  which 
many  men  received,  she  would  have  towered  high  above 
them  in  their  pride  and  selfishness  !  '  Controlled  by  the 
usages  of  society,  she  could  only  live  in  her  imagination, 
and  impress  upon  her  children  the  great  ideas  that 
were  otherwise  doomed  to  fritter  away  uselessly  in  her 
brain.     Indifferent   to    the   charms    of   fashionable    life, 


114  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

deprived  of  the  luxuries  which  too  often  enervate  and 
render  worthless  the  capacities  of  woman,  she  was  as 
independent  and  self-supporting  in  her  actions,  as  were 
the  inspirations  of  her  mind ;  and  through  good  and 
evil  report,  conduced  by  her  example  to  place  that 
reliance  in  her  country's  success  which  in  a  great 
measure  secured  its  independence.  Her  character  was 
one  of  undeviating  fairness  and  frank  truthfulness,  free 
from  affectation  and  vanity. 

From  the  year  1801  down  to  the  day  of  her  death, 
a  period  of  seventeen  years,  she  lived  uninterruptedly 
at  Quincy.  The  old  age  of  Mrs.  Adams  was  not  one 
of  grief  and  repining,  of  clouds  and  darkness ;  her 
cheerfulness  continued  with  the  full  possession  of  her 
faculties  to  the  last,  and  her  sunny  spirit  enlivened  the 
small  social  circle  around  her,  brightened  tlie  solitary 
hours  of  her  husband,  and  spread  the  influence  of  its 
example  over  the  town  where  she  lived.  "  Yesterday," 
she  writes,  to  a  granddaughter,  on  the  26th  of  October, 
1814,  "completes  half  a  century  since  I  entered  the 
marriage  state,  then  just  your  age.  I  have  great  cause 
of  thankfulness  that  I  have  lived  so  long  and  enjoyed  so 
large  a  portion  of  happiness  as  has  been  my  lot.  The 
greatest  source  of  unhappiness  I  have  known,  in  that 
period,  has  arisen  from  the  long  and  cruel  separations 
which  I  was  called,  in  a  time  of  war,  and  with  a  young 
family  around  me,  to  submit  to." 

The  appointment  of  her  eldest  son  as  Minister  to 
Great  Britain,  by  President  Madison,  was  a  life-long  sat- 


FRIENDSHIP    FOR   JEFFERSON.  II  5 

Isfaction  to  her;  and  the  testimony  President  Monroe 
gave  her  of  his  worth,  by  making  him  his  Secretary  of 
State,  was  the  crowning  joy  of  her  Hfe.  Had  she  been 
spared  a  few  years  longer,  she  would  have  enjoyed  see- 
ing him  hold  the  position  his  father  had  occupied  before 
him.  Mrs.  Adams  lost  three  of  her  children:  a  daueh- 
ter  in  infancy;  a  son  grown  to  manhood,  who  died  in 
1800;  and  in  1813  her  only  remaining  daughter,  Abigail, 
the  wife  of  Colonel  William  S.  Smith. 

The  warmest  feelings  of  friendship  had  existed  be- 
tween Mr,  Jefferson  and  herself  until  a  difference  in 
political  sentiments,  developed  during  the  administration 
of  President  Washinsfton,  disturbed  the  social  relations 
existing.  "Both  Mr.  Adams  and  Mr.  Jefferson  tried  as 
hard  as  men  could  do,  to  resist  the  natural  effect  upon 
them  of  their  antagonist  positions.  They  strove  each  in 
turn,  to  stem  the  proscriptive  fury  of  the  parties  to  which 
they  belonged,  and  that  with  equally  bad  success. 

"Mrs.  Adams  felt  as  women  only  feel,  what  she  re- 
garded as  the  ungenerous  conduct  of  Mr.  Jefferson  to- 
wards her  husband  during  the  latter  part  of  his  public 
life,  and  when  she  retired  from  Washington,  notwith- 
standing the  kindest  professions  from  his  mouth  were 
yet  ringing  in  her  ears,  all  communication  between  the 
parties  ceased.  Still,  there  remained  on  both  sides, 
pleasant  reminiscences  to  soften  the  irritation  that  had 
taken  place,  and  to  open  a  way  for  reconciliation  when- 
ever circumstances  should  present  a  suitable  opportU' 
nity." 


I  I  6  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

The  little  daughter  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  in  whom  Mrs. 
Adams  had  taken  so  much  interest  in  1787,  had  in  the 
interval  grown  into  a  woman,  and  had  been  married  to 
Mr.  Eppes  of  Virginia.  In  1804  she  ceased  to  be  num- 
bered among  the  living,  and  almost  against  her  own 
judgment  Mrs.  Adams  wrote  to  him.  He  seemed  to 
be  much  affected  by  this  testimony  of  her  sympathy,  and 
replied,  not  confining  himself  to  the  subject-matter  of 
her  letter,  and  added  a  request  to  know  her  reasons  for 
the  estrangement  that  had  occurred.  Without  the 
knowledge  of  her  husband  she  replied  to  him,  but  he, 
at  first  did  not  choose  to  believe  her  assertion.  Fortu- 
nately, the  original  endorsement,  made  in  the  hand- 
writing of  letters  retained  by  herself,  will  serve  to  put 
this  matter  beyond  question.  Her  last  letter  to  him  was 
as  follows : 

"QUIXCY,  25M  October,  1804. 

"Sir:  Sickness  for  three  weeks  past  has  prevented 
my  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  Sept. 

I I  th.  When  I  first  addressed  you,  I  little  thought  of 
entering  into  a  correspondence  with  you  upon  subjects 
of  a  political  nature.  I  will  not  regret  it,  as  it  has  led  to 
some  elucidations,  and  brought  on  some  explanations, 
which  place  in  a  more  favorable  light  occurrences  which 
had  wounded  me. 

"  Having  once  entertained  for  you  a  respect  and  es- 
teem, founded  upon  the  character  of  an  affectionate  pa- 
rent, a  kind  master,  a  candid  and  benevolent  friend,  I  could 
not  suffer  different  political  opinions  to  obliterate  them 


LETTER    TO    MR.    JEFFERSON.  I  1  7 

from  my  mind.  I  felt  the  truth  of  the  observation,  that 
the  heart  is  long,  very  long  in  receiving  the  conviction 
that  is  forced  upon  it  by  reason.  It  was  not  until  circum- 
stances occurred  to  place  you  in  the  light  of  a  rewarder 
and  encourager  of  a  libeler,  whom  you  could  not  but 
detest  and  despise,  that  I  withdrew  the  esteem  I  had  long 
entertained  for  you.  Nor  can  you  wonder.  Sir,  that  I 
should  consider  as  a  personal  unkindness,  the  instance  I 
have  mentioned.  I  am  pleased  to  find  that  which  re- 
spected my  son  altogether  unfounded.  He  was,  as  you 
conjecture,  appointed  a  commissioner  of  bankruptcy,  to- 
gether with  Judge  Dawes,  and  continued  to  serve  in  it 
with  perfect  satisfaction  to  all  parties  (at  least  I  never 
heard  the  contrary),  v^niA  superseded  by  the  appointment 
of  others.  The  idea  suggested  that  no  one  was  in  office, 
and  consequently  no  removal  could  take  place,  I  cannot 
consider  in  any  other  light  than  what  the  gentlemen  of 
the  law  would  term  a  quibble — as  such  I  pass  it  Judge 
Dawes  was  continued  or  reappointed,  which  placed  Mr. 
Adams  in  a  more  conspicuous  light  as  the  object  of  per- 
sonal resentment.  Nor  could  I,  upon  this  occasion,  re- 
frain calling  to  mind  the  last  visit  you  made  me  at 
Washington,  when  in  the  course  of  conversation  you 
assured  me,  that  if  it  should  lay  in  your  power  at  any 
time  to  serve  me  or  my  family,  nothing  would  give  you 
more  pleasure.  With  respect  to  the  office,  it  was  a 
small  object,  but  the  disposition  of  the  remover  was  con- 
sidered by  me  as  the  barbed  arrow.  This,  however,  by 
your  declaration,   is   withdrawn   from  my  mind.     With 


!l8  ABIGAII,    ADAMS. 

the  public  it  will  remain.  And  here,  Sir,  may  I  be  al- 
lowed to  pause,  and  ask  whether,  in  your  ardent  desire 
to  rectify  the  mistakes  and  abuses,  as  you  may  term 
them,  of  the  former  administrations,  you  may  not  be  led 
into  measures  still  more  fatal  to  the  constitution,  and 
more  derogatory  to  your  honor  and  independence  of 
character?  I  know,  from  the  observations  which  I  have 
made,  that  there  is  not  a  more  difficult  part  devolves 
upon  a  chief  magistrate,  nor  one  which  subjects  him  to 
more  reproach  and  censure,  than  the  appointments  to 
office.  And  all  the  patronage  which  this  enviable  power 
gives  him  is  but  a  poor  compensation  for  the  responsibility 
to  which  it  subjects  him.  It  would  be  well,  however,  to 
weigh  and  consider  characters,  as  it  respects  their  moral 
worth  and  integrity.  He  who  is  not  true  to  himself,  nor 
just  to  others,  seeks  an  office  for  the  benefit  of  himself, 
unmindful  of  that  of  his  country,  I  cannot  accord  with 
you  in  opinion  that  the  Constitution  ever  meant  to  with- 
hold from  the  National  Government  the  power  of  self- 
defence;  or  that  it  could  be  considered  an  infringement 
of  the  liberty  of  the  press,  to  punish  the  licentiousness  of 
it.  Time  must  determine  and  posterity  will  judge  with 
more  candor  and  impartiality,  I  hope,  than  the  conflicting 
parties  of  our  day,  what  measures  have  best  promoted 
the  happiness  of  the  people;  and  what  raised  them  from 
a  state  of  depression  and  degradation  to  wealth,  honor, 
and  reputation ;  what  has  made  them  affluent  at  home  and 
respected  abroad;  and  to  whomsoever  the  tribute  is  due, 
to  them  may  it  be  given,     I  will  not  further  intrude  upon 


JEFFERSON    AND    ADAMS.  II9 

your  time ;  but  close  this  correspondence  by  my  wishes 
that  you  may  be.  directed  to  that  path  which  may  ter- 
minate in  the  prosperity  and  happiness  of  the  people 
over  whom  you  are  placed,  by  administering  the  gov- 
ernment with  justice  and  impartiality;  and  be  assured. 
Sir,  no  one  will  more  rejoice  in  your  success  than 

"Abigail  Adams." 

(Mkmorandum  subjoined  to  ihe  copy  of  this  letter,  in  the  handwriting  of   Mr. 

A-l,rns.) 

"  QuiNcy,  19//^  November,  1804. 

"  The  whole  of  this  correspondence  was  begun  and 

conducted  without   my   knowledge  or  suspicion.     Last 

eveninof  and  this  morninqr,  at  the  desire  of  Mrs,  Adams. 

I  read  the  whole.     I  have  no  remarks  to  make  upon  it, 

at  this  time  and  in  this  place. 

"J.  Adams." 

"A  new  and  strong  tie  was  beginning  indeed  to  bind 
the  stately  old  men  together.  They  were  speedily  be- 
coming the  last  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence — the  last  of  the  .great  actors  and  leaders 
of  1776.  Their  common  and  dearly-loved  friend  Rush^ 
had  died  in  April,  1813,  after  a  brief  illness."  Mr. 
Jefferson  wrote  to  Mr.  Adams  of  tliis  occurrence,  and 
said:  "Another  of  our  friends  of  seventy-six  is  gone,  my 
dear  sir,  another  of  the  co-signers  of  the  independence 
of  our  country.  I  believe  we  are  under  half  a  dozen  at 
present;  I  mean  the  signers  of  the  Declaration.  Your- 
self, Gerry,  Carroll  and  myself,  are  all  I  know  to  be 
living." 


120  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

Appended  to  a  letter  from  Adams  to  Jeflferson,  dated 
July  15th,  1813,  we  find  the  following: 

"I  have  been  looking-  for  some  time  for  a  space  in  my 
ofood  husband's  letters  to  add  the  regards  of  an  old 
friend,  which  are  still  cherished  and  preserved  through 
all  the  changes  and  vicissitudes  which  have  taken  place 
since  we  first  became  acquainted,  and  will,  I  trust,  re- 
main as  long  as 

"A.  Adams." 

"Neither  Mrs.  Adams  nor  her  husband  ever  met 
Mr.  Jefferson  again,  but  she  had  the  opportunity,  and 
eagerly  availed  herself  of  it,  to  bestow  kindly  and  as- 
siduous attentions  on  some  of  his  family. 

"She  lost  none  of  the  imposing  features  of  her  char- 
acter in  the  decline  of  life.  An  observing  and  intelligent 
gentleman  who  was  a  guest  at  Quincy  within  a  year  or 
two  of  her  death,  has  given  us  a  description  of  his  visit. 
Mr.  Adams  shook  as  if  palsied;  but  the  mind  and  the 
heart  were  evidently  sound.  His  spirits  seemed  as  elas- 
tic as  a  boy's.  He  joked,  laughed  heartily,  and  talked 
about  everybody  and  everything,  past  and  present,  with 
the  most  complete  aba7idon.  He  seemed  to  our  highly 
educated  informant  to  be  a  vast  encyclopaedia  of  written 
and  unwritten  knowledge.  It  gushed  out  on  every  pos- 
sible topic,  but  was  mingled  with  lively  anecdotes  and 
sallies,  and  he  exhibited  a  carelessness  in  his  language 
which  suggested  anything  but  pedantry  or  an  attempt  at 
'fine  talking.'  In  short,  the  brave  old  'man  was  as  de- 
liofhtful  as  he  was  commandingf  in  conversation.     While 


DEATH    OF    MRS.    ADAMS.  121 

the  guest  was  deeply  enjoying  this  interview,  an  aged 
and  stately  female  entered  the  apartment,  and  he  was 
introduced  to  Mrs.  Adams.  A  cap  of  exquisite  lace 
surrounded  features  still  exhibiting  intellect  and  energy, 
though  they  did  not  wear  the  appearance  of  ever  having 
been  beautiful.  Her  dress  was  snowy  white,  and  there 
was  that  immaculate  neatness  in  her  appearance  which 
jiives  to  aee  almost  the  sweetness  of  youth.  With  less 
warmth  of  manner  and  sociableness  than  Mr.  Adams, 
she  was  sufficiently  gracious,  and  her  occasional  remarks 
betrayed  intellectual  vigor  and  strong  sense.  The 
guest  went  away  feeling  that  he  never  again  should 
behold  such  living  specimens  of  the  'great  of  old.'  " 

Mrs.  Adams  died  of  an  attack  of  fever,  the  28th  of 
(October,  18 18,  at  the  advanced  age  of  seventy-four  years. 
"  To  learning,"  says  her  grandson,  "  in  the  ordinary  sense 
of  that  term,  Mrs.  Adams  could  make  no  claim.  Her 
reading  had  been  extensive  in  the  lighter  departments 
of  literature,  and  she  was  well  acquainted  with  the  poets 
in  her  own  language,  but  it  went  no  further.  It  is  the 
.soul,  shining  through  the  words,  that  gives  them  their 
great  attraction  ;  the  spirit  ever  equal  to  the  occasion, 
whether  a  great  or  a  small  one  ;  a  spirit,  inquisitive  and 
earnest  in  the  little  details  of  life,  as  when  she  was  in 
France  and  England ;  playful,  when  she  describes  daily 
duties,  but  rising  to  the  call  when  the  roar  of  cannon  is 
in  her  ears — or  when  she  reproves  her  husband  for  not 
knowinor  her  better  than  to  think  her  a  coward  and  to 
fear  tellincr  her  bad  news." 


122  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

"  The  obsequies  of  Mrs.  Adams  were  attended  by  a 
great  concourse  of  people,  who  voluntarily  came  to  pay 
this  last  tribute  to  her  memory.  Several  brief  but  beau- 
tiful notices  of  her  appeared  in  the  newspapers  of  the 
day,  and  a  sermon  was  preached  by  the  late  Rev.  Dr. 
Kirkland,  then  President  of  Harvard  University,  which 
closed  with  a  delicate  and  affecting  testimony  to  her 
worth.  '  Ye  will  seek  to  mourn,  bereaved  friends,'  it 
says,  'as  becomes  Christians,  in  a  manner  worthy  of  the 
person  you  lament.  You  do  then  bless  the  Giver  of 
Life  that  the  course  of  your  endeared  and  honored  friend 
was  so  long  and  so  bright ;  that  she  entered  so  fully 
into  the  spirit  of  those  injunctions  which  we  have  ex- 
plained, and  was  a  minister  of  blessings  to  all  within  her 
influence.  You  are  soothed  to  reflect  that  she  was  sen- 
sible of  the  many  tokens  of  divine  goodness  which 
marked  her  lot ;  that  she  received  the  good  of  her  exist- 
ence with  a  cheerful  and  grateful  heart ;  that,  when  called 
to  weep,  she  bore  adversity  with  an  equal  mind  ;  that 
she  used  the  world  as  not  abusing  it  to  excess,  improving 
well  her  time,  talents  and  opportunities,  and  though  de- 
sired longer  in  this  world,  was  fitted  for  a  better  happi- 
ness than  this  world  can  o"ive.'  " 

Mr.  Jefferson,  despite  the  feeling  that  he  had  not  been 
understood  by  Mrs.  Adams  as  he  thought  he  deserved, 
never  lost  any  part  of  the  profound  respect  and  friend- 
ship he  entertained  for  her,  and  soon  as  the  news  of 
her  death  reached  him  he  wrote  as  follows  to  her 
husband : 


HER    GRAVE    AT   QUINCY.  I  23 

To  John  Adams. 

"  MoNTlCEi.LO,  November  13///,  1818 

"The  public  papers,  my  dear  friend,  announce  tlie  fatal 
event  of  which  your  letter  of  October  the  20th  had  given 
me  ominous  foreboding-.  Tried  myself  in  the  school  of 
affliction,  by  the  loss  of  every  form  of  connection  which 
can  rive  the  human  heart,  I  know  well,  and  feel  what  you 
have  lost,  what  you  have  suffered,  are  suffering,  and  have 
yet  to  endure.  The  same  trials  have  taught  me  that 
for  ills  so  immeasurable,  time  and  silence  are  the  only 
niedicine.  I  will  not,  therefore,  by  useless  condolences, 
open  afresh  the  sluices  of  your  grief,  nor,  although 
mingling  sincerely  my  tears  with  yours,  will  I  say  a  word 
more  where  words  are  vain,  but  that  it  is  of  some  com- 
fort to  us  both  that  the  time  is  not  very  distant  at 
which  we  are  to  deposit  in  the  same  casement  our  sor- 
rows and  suffering  bodies,  and  to  ascend  in  essence  to 
an  ecstatic  meeting  with  the  friends  we  have  loved  and 
lost,  and  whom  we  shall  still  love  and  never  lose  again. 
God  bless  you,  and  support  you  under  your  heavy  afflic- 
tion. 

"Tn.  Jefferson." 

Side  by  side  in  the  Congregational  church  in  Ouincy, 
to  which  he  had  given  the  donation  to  erect  it  with,  lie 
the  mortal  remains  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Adams.  Within 
the  same  house,  a  plain  white  marble  slab,  on  the  right 
hand  of  the  pulpit,  surmounted  by  his  bust,  bears  the 
following  inscription,  written  by  his  eldest  son: 


J '4  ABIGAIL    ADAMS. 

Libertatem.  Aniicitiam.  Fidem  Retinebis. 

D.  O.  M. 

Beneath  these  walls, 

Are  deposited  the  mortal  remains  of 

JOHN  ADAMS, 

Son  of  John  and  Susanna  (Boylston)  Adams, 

Second  President  of  the  United  States, 

Born  ^9  October,  1735. 

On  the  fourth  of  July,  1776, 

He  pledged  his  life,  fortune,  and  sacred  honour. 

To  the  Independence  of  his  country. 

On  the  third  of  September,  1783, 

He  affixed  his  seal  to  the  definitive  treaty  with  Great  Britain, 

Which  acknowledged  that  independence, 

And  consummated  the  redemption  of  his  pledge. 

On  the  fourth  of  July,  1826, 

He  was  summoned 

To  the  Independence  of  Immortality 

And  to  the  judgment  of  his  God. 

This  house  will  bear  witness  to  his  piety; 

This  Town,  his  birth-place,  to  his  munificence; 

History  to  his  patriotism; 

Posterity  to  the  depth  and  compass  of  his  mind. 

At  his  side. 

Sleeps,  till  the  trump  shall  sound, 

ABIGAIL, 

His  beloved  and  only  wife. 

Daughter  of  William  and  Elizabeth  (Quincy)  Smith. 

In  every  relation  of  life  a  pattern 

of  filial,  conjugal,  maternal,  and  social  virtue. 

Born  November  ^^,  1744, 

Deceased  28  October,  181 8, 

Aged  74. 
Married  25  October,  1764. 


THE    TABLET.  I  2' 

During  an  union  of  more  than  half  a  century 
They  survived,  in  harmony  of  sentiment,  principle  and  affection, 
The  tempests  of  civil  commotion. 
Meeting  undaunted  and  surmounting 
The  terrors  and  trials  of  that  revolution, 
Which  secured  the  freedom  of  their  country ; 
Improved  the  condition  of  their  times; 
And  brightened  the  prospects  of  futurity 
To  the  race  of  man  upon  earth. 

Pilgrim  ! 
From  lives  thus  spent  thy  earthly  duties  learn : 
From  fancy's  dreams  to  active  virtue  turn  : 
Let  freedom,  friendship,  faith,  thy  soul  engage. 
And  serve,  like  them,  thy  country  and  thy  ag«. 


III. 

MARTHA   JEFFERSON. 

Mrs.  Jefferson  had  been  dead  nineteen  years  when, 
in  iSoi,  President  Jefferson  took  possession  of  the 
White  House,  and  there  was,  stricdy  speaking,  no  lady 
of  the  mansion  durinor  his  term.  His  daughters  were 
with  him  in  Washington  only  twice  during  his  eight 
years'  stay,  and  he  held  no  formal  receptions  as  are 
customary  now;  and  being  of  the  French  school  of 
democratic  politics,  professed  a  dislike  of  all  ceremoni- 
ous visitors. 

On  the  ist  day  of  January.  1772,  Mr.  Jefferson  wa;? 
married  to  Mrs.  Martha  Skelton,  widow  of  Bathurs^- 
Skelton,  and  daughter  of  John  Wayles,  of  "the  Forest,'' 
in  Charles  City  County. 

Mr.  Lossing,  in  his  very  interesting  book  of  the 
Revolution,  gives  a  fac-simile  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  mar- 
riage license  bond,  drawn  up  in  his  own  handwriting, 
which  the  former  found  in  a  bundle  of  old  papers  in 
Charles  City  Court  House  while  searching  for  records 
of  Revolution  events.  "  Mrs.  Skelton  was  remarkable 
for  her  beauty,  her  accomplishments,  and  her  solid 
merit.  In  person  she  was  a  little  above  medium  height, 
slightly  but  exquisitely  formed.  Her  complexion  was 
brilliant — her  large  expressive  eyes  of  the  richest  tinge 

of  auburn.     She  walked,  rode,  and  danced   with  admir- 
(126) 


V' 


Ini-iili 


Z:  ■  ■^ir'Vi^^-Sf^T. 


Ar^'    •- 


MA)tR^:a[A  j7JEip:p]EMS®Kr  jRfljif 


TW:    RIVAL    LOVERS.  I  27 

able  grace  and  spirits — sang  and  played  the  spinet  and 
harpsichord  [the  musical  instruments  of  the  Virginia 
ladies  of  that  day]  with  uncommon  skill.  The  more 
solid  parts  of  her  education  had  not  been  neglected." 
She  was  also  well  read  and  intelligent,  conversed  agree- 
ably, possessed  excellent  sense  and  a  lively  play  of 
fancy,  and  had  a  frank,  warm-hearted  and  somewhat 
impulsive  disposition.  She  was  twenty-three  years  of 
acre  at  the  time  of  her  second  marriaore,  and  had  been 
a  widow  four  years.  Her  only  child  she  lost  in  infancy. 
Tradition,  says  Randall,  has  preserved  one  anecdote 
of  the  wooers  who  sought  her  hand.  It  has  two  ren- 
derings, and  the  reader  may  choose  between  them. 
The  first  is  that  two  of  JNIr.  Jefferson's  rivals  happened 
to  meet  on  Mrs.  Skelton's  door-stone.  They  were 
shown  into  a  room  from  which  they  heard  her  harpsi- 
chord and  voice,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Jefferson's  violin 
and  voice,  in  the  passages  of  a  touching  song.  They 
listened  for  a  stanza  or  two.  Whether  somethina-  in 
the  words,  or  in  the  tones  of  the  singers  appeared  sug- 
gestive to  them,  tradition  does  not  say,  but  it  docs  aver 
that  they  took  their  hats  and  retired  to  return  no  more 
on  the  same  errand !  The  other,  and,  we  think,  less 
probable  version  of  the  story  is,  that  the  three  met  on 
the  door-stone,  and  agreed  that  they  would  "take  turns" 
and  that  the  interviews  should  be  made  decisive ;  and 
that  by  lot  or  otherwise  Mr.  Jefferson  led  off,  and  that 
then  during  his  trial  they  heard  the  music  that  they  con- 
cluded setded  the  point.     After  the  bridal  festivities  at 


128  MARTHA   JEFFERSON. 

the  Forest,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jefferson  set  out  for  Mon- 
ticello,  and  they  were  destined  to  meet  some  not  exactly 
amusing  adventures  by  the  way.  A  manuscript  of  their 
eldest  daughter  (Mrs.  Randolph)  furnished  Mr.  Randall 
by  one  of  her  granddaughters  and  published  in  his 
"Life  of  Jefferson" — says:  "They  left  the  Forest  after  a 
fall  of  snow,  light  then,  but  increasing  in  depth  as  they 
advanced  up  the  country.  They  were  finally  obliged  to 
quit  the  carriage  and  proceed  on  horseback.  Having 
stopped  for  a  short  time  at  Blenheim  (the  residence  of 
Colonel  Carter)  where  an  overseer  only  resided,  they 
left  it  at  sunset  to  pursue  their  way  through  a  mountain 
track  rather  than  a  road,  in  which  the  snow  lay  from 
eighteen  inches  to  two  feet  deep,  having  eight  miles  to 
go  before  reaching  Monticello. 

"They  arrived  late  at  night,  the  fires  all  out  and  tl,e 
servants  retired  to  their  own  houses  for  the  night.  The 
horrible  dreariness  of  such  a  house,  at  the  end  of  such 
a  journey,  I  have  often  heard  them  both  relate."  Part 
of  a  bottle  of  wine,  found  on  a  shelf  behind  some 
books,  had  to  serve  the  new-married  couple  both  for 
fire  and  supper.  Tempers  too  sunny  to  be  rufiled  by 
many  ten  times  as  serious  annoyances  in  after  life,  now 
found  but  sources  of  diversion  in  these  ludicrous  co7iti'e' 
temps,  and  the  horrible  dreariness  was  lit  up  with  songs, 
and  merriment  and  lauofhter. 

Nine  years  afterward,  Mrs.  Jefferson,  the  mother  of 
five  children,  was  slowly  declining,  and  her  husband, 
refusing  a  mission   to   Europe  on  that  account,  deter- 


ESCAPE    FROM    THE    BRITISH.  1 29 

mined  to  give  up  all  other  duties  to  soothe  and  sustain 
her.  She  had  borne  her  fifth  child  in  November,  and 
when  it  was  two  months  old,  she  had  fled  with  it  in  her 
arms  as  Arnold  approached  Richmond.  "The  British 
General  Tarleton  sent  troops  to  capture  Governor  Jef- 
ferson, who  was  occupied  in  securing  his  most  important 
papers.  While  thus  engaged,  his  wife  and  children  were 
taken  in  a  carriage,  under  the  care  of  a  young  gende- 
man  who  was  studying  with  him,  to  Colonel  Coles, 
fourteen  miles  distant.  Monticello  was  captured  (if  a 
residence  occupied  by  unresisting  servants  may  be  said 
to  be  captured),  and  the  house  searched,  though  not 
sacked  by  the  enemy.  Many  of  the  negroes  were 
taken,  and  but  five  ever  returned,  while  the  greater  part, 
of  those  left  behind  sank  under  the  epidemics  raging  at 
the  time.  The  house  was  robbed  of  nothinsf  save  a  fe\v 
articles  in  the  cellar,  the  farm  was  stripped  of  valuabl ; 
horses,  and  many  thousand  dollars'  worth  of  grain  and 
tobacco.  An  anecdote  is  told  of  two  of  Mr.  Jefferson's 
fjlaves — Martin  and  Caesar,  who  were  left  in  charge  of 
the  house  and  were  engaged  in  secreting  plate  and 
other  valuables  under  the  floor  of  the  front  pordco, 
when  a  party  of  British  soldiers  arrived.  TTie  floor  was 
then  of  planks.  One  of  these  was  raised,  and  Martin 
stood  above  handing  down  articles  to  Cassar,  In  the 
cellar  improvised  by  the  faithful  slaves  in  the  emer- 
gency. While  he  was  finishing  his  packing,  Martin 
heard  the  tramp  of  horses'  feet,  and  looking  in  the 
direction    Indicated   saw   the   red    coats    coming.     For 


130  MARTHA    JEFFERSON. 

Caesar  to  get  out  was  to  Inform  the  British  where  the 
valuables  they  were  tr^ang  to  save  were  secreted,  and 
without  a  word  of  warning  the  plank  was  put  down. 
Caesar  understood  the  sudden  action  to  mean  danger, 
and  very  soon  he  knew  by  the  noise  overhead  that  the 
enemy  had  come.  For  eighteen  hours  he  remained  In 
the  dark  hole,  and  was  not  released  until  Martin  was 
sure  of  the  departure  of  the  last  one  of  the  raiders." 

In  April,  the  loss  of  her  infant,  together  with  constant 
anxiety  for  the  safety  of  her  husband,  shattered  the 
remaining  strength  of  Mrs.  Jefferson.  Toward  the  close 
of  1781,  she  rallied.  Her  last  child  was  born  the  8th 
of  May,  1782.  Greater  apprehensions  than  usual  had 
preceded  the  event  and  they  were  fatally  verihed.  The 
delicate  constitution  was  Irrevocably  sapped.  "A  mo- 
mentary hope  for  her  might  sometimes  flutter  in  the 
bosom  of  her  lonely  husband,  but  it  was  in  reality  a 
hope  against  hope,  and  he  knew  it  to  be  so.  That 
association  which  had  been  the  first  joy  of  his  life,  which 
blent  itself  with  all  his  future  visions  of  happiness,  which 
was  to  be  the  crowning  glory  of  that  delightful  retreat 
he  was  forming,  and  which  was  to  shed  mellow  radiance 
over  the  retirement  to  which  he  was  fondly  looking 
forward,  was  now  to  end;  and  it  was  only  a  question  of 
weeks,  or,  possibly,  months,  how  soon  it  would  end. 
Mrs.  Jefferson  had  returned  her  husband's  affection, 
with  not  only  the  fervor  of  a  woman  whose  dream  of 
love  and  pride  (for  what  woman  Is  not  proud  of  the 
world's  estimation  of  her  husband?)  has  been  more  than 


A  husband's  devotion.  131 

gratified,  but  with  the  idolatrous  gratitude  of  a  wife  who 
knew  how  often  that  husband  had  cast  away  the  most 
tempting  honors  without  a  sigh,  when  her  own  feeble 
health  had  solicited  his  presence  and  attentions.  And 
now,  as  the  dreadful  hour  of  parting  approached,  her 
affection  became  painfully,  almost  wildly  absorbing.  The 
faithful  daughter  of  the  church  had  no  dread  of  the 
hereafter,  but  she  yearned  to  remain  with  her  husband 
with  that  yearning  which  seems  to  have  power  to  retard 
even  the  approaches  of  death.  Her  eyes  ever  rested 
on  him,  ever  followed  him.  When  he  spoke,  no  other 
sound  could  reach  her  ear  or  attract  her  attention. 
When  she  waked  from  slumber,  she  looked  momentarily 
alarmed  and  distressed,  and  ever  appeared  to  be  fright- 
ened, if  the  customary  form  was  not  bending  over  her, 
the  customary  look  upon  her.  For  weeks  Mr.  Jefferson 
sat  at  that  bedside,  only  catching  brief  intervals  of  rest." 

She  died  on  the  6th  of  September.  Her  eldest 
daughter,  Mrs.  Randolph,  many  years  afterward,  said 
of  the  sad  scene :  "He  nursed  my  poor  mother  in  turn 
with  Aunt  Carr  and  her  own  sister,  sitting  up  with  her 
and  administering  her  medicines  and  drink  to  the  last. 
For  four  months  that  she  lingered,  he  was  never  out  of 
callinof;  when  not  at  her  bedside  he  was  writinor  in  a 
small  room  which  opened  immediately  into  hers." 

To  her  were  denied  the  honors  that  later  in  life 
crowned  the  brow  of  her  gifted  husband.  Had  she 
survived,  no  more  pleasant  life  could  have  been  traced 
than    this   gentle,   cultivated  woman's.      Hers    was    no 


132  MARTHA   JEFFERSON. 

passive  nature,  swayed  by  every  passing  breeze,  but  a 
loving,  strong  heart,  a  rare  and  gifted  intellect,  culti- 
vated by  solid  educational  advantages,  experience,  and 
the  society  of  the  greatest  statesman  and  scholar  of  his 
day.  In  the  midst  of  all  happiness,  vouchsafed  to  hu- 
manity, she  died;  and  her  husband,  faithful  to  her 
memory,  devoted  himself  to  their  children,  and  lived 
and  died  her  lonely-hearted  mourner. 

Martha  Jefferson,  after  the  death  of  her  mother,  was 
placed  at  school  in  Philadelphia,  at  the  age  of  eleven 
years,  where  she  remained  until  her  father  took  her,  in 
1 784,  to  Europe.  His  other  two  daughters,  being  too 
young  for  such  a  journey,  were  left  with  their  maternal 
aunt,  Mrs.  Eppes,  wife  of  Francis  Eppes,  Esquire,  of 
Eppington,  Chesterfield  County,  Virginia.  Mary,  th^ 
second  of  his  surviving  children,  was  six  years  old,  and 
Lucy  Elizabeth,  the  third,  was  two  years  old.  The  latter 
died  before  the  close  of  1 784.  The  child  of  sorrow  and 
misfortune,  her  organization  was  too  frail  and  too  in- 
tensely susceptible  to  last  long.  Her  sensibilities  were 
so  precociously  acute,  that  she  listened  with  exquisite 
pleasure  to  music,  and  wept  on  hearing  a  false  note. 

After  a  short  period  of  sight-seeing,  Martha  Jefferson 
was  placed  at  a  convent,  and  continued  to  reside  there 
during  her  father's  stay  in  Europe.  In  July,  1787,  "the 
•.long-expected  Mary  (called  Marie  in  France,  and 
thenceforth  through  life,  Marie)  reached  London."  She 
had  crossed  the  Adantic  with  simply  a  servant  girl, 
though  doubdess  they  were  both  intrusted  to  the  charge 


THE    DAUGHTERS.  I  33 

of  some  passenger  friend,  or  some  known  and  trusted 
ship  commander,  whom  we  do  not  find  named.  They 
were  received  by  Mrs.  Adams,  and  awaited  an  expected 
opportunity  of  crossing  the  Cliannel  with  a  party  of 
French  friends  of  Mr.  Jefferson.  These  continued  to 
defer  their  return,  and  Mr.  Jefferson  became  too  im- 
patient to  await  their  movements.  Accordingly,  his 
steward,  the  favorite  and  trusty  Petit,  was  sent  to  Lon- 
don after  Marie,  and  she  reached  her  father's  hotel  in 
Paris,  on  the  29th  of  July,  just  three  days  before  her 
ninth  birthday. 

Mrs.  Adams  thus  describes  her  little  guest,  immediately 
after  her  departure,  in  a  letter  to  her  sister,  Mrs.  Cranch, 
of  Massachusetts: 

"  I  have  had  with  me  for  a  fortnicrht  a  little  dau£rhter 
of  Mr.  Jefferson's,  who  arrived  here  with  a  young  negro 
girl,  her  servant,  from  Virginia.  Mr.  Jefferson  wrote  me 
some  months  ago  that  he  expected  them,  and  desired  me 
to  receive  them.  I  did  so,  and  was  amply  rewarded  for 
my  trouble.  A  finer  child  of  her  age  I  never  saw.  So 
mature  an  understanding,  so  womanly  a  behavior,  and 
so  much  sensibility,  united,  are  rarely  to  be  met  with.  I 
grew  so  fond  of  her,  and  she  was  so  attached  to  me,  that 
when  Mr.  Jefferson  sent  for  her,  they  were  obliged  to 
force  the  little  creature  away.  She  is  but  eight  years 
old.  She  would  sit,  sometimes,  and  describe  to  me  the 
parting  with  her  aunt,  who  brought  her  up,*  the  obliga- 
tions she  was  under  to  her,  and  the  love  she  had  for  her 

*  Mrs.  Francis  Eppes,  of  Eppington,  Va. 


134  MARTHA    JEFFERSON. 

little  cousins,  till  the  tears  would  stream  down  her  cheeks  ; 
and  how  I  had  been  her  friend,  and  she  loved  me.  Her 
papa  would  break  her  heart  by  making-  her  go  again. 
She  clung  round  me  so  that  I  could  not  help  shedding  a 
tear  at  parting  with  her.  She  was  the  favorite  of  every- 
one in  the  house.  I  regret  that  such  fine  spirits  must  be 
spent  in  the  walls  of  a  convent.  She  is  a  beautiful  girl, 
too." 

Marie  (for  so  we  shall  henceforth  call  her,  unless  when 
adopting  her  father's  sobriquet  of  Polly)  was  soon  placed 
with  Martha  in  the  school  of  the  Abbaye  de  Panthemont. 
Martha  had  now  grown  into  a  tall,  graceful  girl,  with  that 
calm,  sweet  face,  stamped  with  thought  and  earnestness, 
which,  with  the  traces  of  many  more  years  on  it,  and  the 
noble  dignity  of  the  matron  superadded,  beams  down 
from  the  speaking  canvas  of  Sully.  The  most  dutiful 
of  daughters,  the  most  attentive  of  learners,  possessing 
a  solid  understanding,  a  judgment  ripe  beyond  her  years, 
a  most  gentle  and  genial  temper,  and  an  unassuming 
modesty  of  demeanor,  which  neither  the  distinction  of  her 
position,  nor  the  flatteries  that  afterward  surrounded 
her,  ever  wore  off  in  the  least  degree,  she  was  the  idol 
of  her  father  and  family,  and  the  delight  of  all  who  knew 
her. 

The  little  Marie  has  been  sufficiently  described  by 
Mrs.  Adams.  "Slighter  In  person  than  her  sister,  she 
already  gave  Indications  of  a  superior  beauty.  It  was  that 
exquisite  beauty  possessed  by  her  mother — that  beauty 
which  the  experienced  learn  to  look  upon  with  dread, 


MARTHA    WISHES    TO    REMAIN    IN    CONVENT.  1 35 

because  it  betrays  a  physical  organization  too  delicately 
fine  to  withstand  the  rough  shocks  of  the  world." 

In  April,  an  incident  of  an  interesting  character  oc- 
curred in  Mr.  Jefferson's  family.  His  oldest  daughter, 
as  has  been  seen,  had  been  educated  in  the  views  and 
feelinors  of  the   Church  of  Enoland.     Her  mother  had 

o  o 

zealously  moulded  her  young  mind  in  that  direction. 
Her  father  had  done  nothing  certainly,  by  word  or  act, 
to  divert  it  from  that  channel ;  and  it  had  flowed  on,  for 
aught  Martha  knew  or  suspected  to  the  contrary,  with 
his  full  approbation.  If  she  had  then  been  called  upon 
to  state  what  were  her  father's  religious  beliefs,  she  would 
have  declared  that  her  impressions  were  that  he  leaned 
to  the  tenets  of  the  church  to  which  his  family  belonged. 
The  daring  and  flippant  infidelity  now  rife  in  French  so- 
ciety, disgusted  the  earnest,  serious,  naturally  reverential 
girl.  The  calm  seclusion  of  Panthemont,  its  examples 
of  serene  and  holy  life,  its  intellectual  associations,  wooed 
her  away  from  the  turmoil  and  glare  and  wickedness  and 
eruptions  without.  After  meditating  on  the  subject  for 
a  time,  she  wrote  to  her  father  for  his  permission  to  re- 
main in  a  convent,  and  to  dedicate  herself  to  the  duties 
of  a  reliofious  life. 

For  a  day  or  two  she  received  no  answer.  Then  his 
carriage  rolled  up  to  the  door  of  the  Abbaye,  and  poor 
Martha  met  her  father  in  a  fever  of  doubts  and  fears. 
Never  was  his  smile  more  benignant  and  gentle.  He 
had  a  private  interview  with  the  Abbess.  He  then  told 
his  daughters  he  had  come  for  them.    They  stepped  into 


136  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

his  carriage,  it  rolled  away,  and  Martha's  school  life  was 
ended.  Henceforth  she  was  introduced  into  society,  and 
presided,  so  far  as  was  appropriate  to  her  age,  as  the 
mistress  of  her  father's  household.  Neither  he  nor 
Martha  ever,  after  her  first  letter  on  the  subject,  made 
the  remotest  allusion  to  each  other  to  her  request  to 
enter  a  convent.  She  spoke  of  it  freely  in  after  years,  to 
her  children,  and  always  expressed  her  full  approbation 
of  her  father's  course  on  the  occasion.  She  always  spoke 
of  her  early  wish  as  rather  the  dictate  of  a  transient  sen- 
timent than  a  fixed  conviction  of  religious  duty;  and  she 
warmly  applauded  the  quick  and  gentle  way  which  her 
father  took  to  lead  her  back  to  her  family,  her  friends, 
and  her  country.  Mr.  Jefferson  left  the  shores  of  Europe 
with  his  two  daughters  the  28th  of  October,  i  789,  and 
the  following  February  Martha  was  married  to  Thomas 
Mann  Randolph,  Jr.,  who  had  been  a  ward  of  her  father's. 
"  The  young  people  were  cousins,  and  had  been  attached 
to  each  other  from  childhood.  He  was  tall,  lean,  with 
dark,  expressive  features  and  a  flashing  eye,  commanding 
i.l  carriage,  elastic  as  steel,  and  had  that  sudden  sinewy 
strength  which  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  fancy  he  in- 
herited from  the  forest  monarchs  of  Virginia." 

On  his  return  home,  Mr,  Jefferson  was  immediately 
tendered,  and  accepted  a  position  in  President  Washing- 
ton's cabinet,  and  made  his  home  in  New  York  and 
afterward  in  Philadelphia  until  his  withdrawal  from  public 
life.  i 

Mr.  Jefferson  was  elected  Vice-President  on  the  ticket 


GAMING    FASHIONABLE.  I  37 

with  President  John  Adams,  and  at  the  end  of  this  ad- 
ministration he  was  elected  to  fill  the  first  position  in  the 
gift  of  the  nation.  On  the  fourth  of  March,  1801,  he  was 
inaueurated  President  of  the  United  States.  His  dauMi- 
ter  Martha  was  living  at  her  husband's  country  home 
near  Monticello,  the  mother  of  several  children,  and 
Marie,  who  had  previously  married  Mr.  Eppes,  of 
Eppington,  was  happily  situated  at  Monticello,  awaiting 
her  father's  promised  visit  in  early  summer. 

Sir  Augustus  Foster,  who  was  Secretary  of  Lega- 
tion at  Washington  to  the  British  Minister,  Mr.  Merry, 
has  criven  some  rather  entertaininq;'  accounts  of  the. 
state  q(  society  there  in  the  time  of  Jefferson.  "In 
j'oine  to  assemblies,  one  had  to  drive  three  or  four 
Diiles  within  the  city  bounds,  and  very  often  at  the  risk 
(if  an  overturn,  or  of  being  what  is  termed  stalled,  or 
svuck  in  the  mud,  when  one  can  neither  go  backward 
nor  forward,  and  either  loses  one's  shoes  or  one's 
patience.  Cards  were  a  great  resource  of  an  evening, 
and  eaminor  ^as  all  the  fashion,  for  the  men  who  fre- 
quented  society  were  chiefly  from  Virginia  or  the  West- 
ern States,  and  were  very  fond  of  brag,  the  most  gam- 
blincT  of  all  eames.  Loo  was  the  innocent  diversion  of 
the  ladies,  who  when  they  were  looed,  pronounced  the 
word  in  a  very  mincing  manner. 

"The  New  Englanders,  generally  speaking,  were  very 
religious,  but  though  there  were  many  exceptions,  I 
cannot  say  so  much  for  the  Marylanders,  and  still  less 
for  the  Virginians.     But  in  spite  of  its  inconveniences 


I  T,S  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

and  desolate  aspect,  it  was,  I  think,  the  most  agreeable 
town  to  reside  in  for  any  length  of  time.  The  oppor- 
tunity of  collecting  information  from  Senators  and  Rep- 
resentatives from  all  parts  of  the  country — the  hospi- 
tality of  the  heads  of  the  Government  and  the  Corps 
Diplomatique — of  itself  supplied  resources  such  as  could 
nowhere  else  be  looked  for." 

In  Mr.  Jefferson's  time,  the  population  numbered 
about  five  thousand  persons,  and  their  residences  were 
scattered  over  an  immense  space.  Society  presented  a 
novel  aspect;  unconnected  by  similarity  of  habits,  by 
established  fashions,  by  the  ties  of  acquaintance  or  con- 
sanguinity, the  motley  throng  became  united  in^p  one 
close  and  intimate  circle  by  a  feeling  common  to  all; 
they  were  strangers  in  a  strange  land,  and  felt  the 
necessity  of  mutual  aid  and  accommodation,  and  might 
be  compared  to  a  beautiful  piece  of  mosaic,  in  which 
an  infinity  of  separate  pieces  of  diversified  colors  are 
blended  into  one  harmonious  whole.  Mr.  Jefferson, 
many  years  after  his  retirement  from  public  life,  recur- 
ring to  that  time,  remarked  to  a  friend  that  the  peculiar 
felicity  of  his  administration  was  the  unanimity  that 
prevailed  in  his  Cabinet;  "w^e  were,"  said  he,  "like  one 
family."  The  same  spirit  of  union  and  kindness  per- 
vaded the  whole  circle  of  society — a  circle  at  that  time 
very  limited  in  its  extent  and  very  simple  in  its  habits. 
The  most  friendly  and  social  intercourse  prevailed 
through  all  its  parts,  unshackled  by  that  etiquette  and 
ceremony  which  have  since  been  introduced,  to  the  no 


ABOLISHES     LEVEES.  1 39 

small  detriment  of  social  enjoyment.  The  President's 
house  was  the  seat  of  hospitality,  where  Mrs.  Madison 
always  presided  (in  the  absence  of  Mr.  Jefferson's 
daughters)  when  there  were  female  guests.  Mrs. 
Madison  and  her  husband  spent  three  weeks  at  the 
White  House  after  their  arrival  in  the  city,  until  they 
could  make  arrangements  to  obtain  a  suitable  house. 
President  Jefferson  abolished  the  custom  of  holding 
levees  which  Mrs.  Washington  had  introduced,  and  the 
fashionable  people  of  the  city  did  not  like  the  innova- 
tion. The  ladies  in  particular  were  opposed  to  it,  and 
they  made  up  their  minds  to  muster  in  force  at  the  Presi- 
dential Mansion  at  the  usual  time.  They  accordingly 
did  so,  and  the  President  received  them  as  they  found 
him,  hat  in  hand,  spurs  on  his  feet,  and  clothing  covered 
with  dust  just  after  a  long  ride  on  horseback.  He  wel- 
comed his  guests  heartil}^  did  what  he  could  to  make 
their  call  agreeable,  but  it  was  not  repeated.  His  op- 
position to  levees  was  said  to  be  due  to  the  fact  that  he 
was  democratic  In  his  ideas  and  thought  theni  unsuited 
to  American  institutions.  But  the  fact  that  there  was 
no  lady  to  preside  over  them  was  doubtless  one  of  his 
reasons. 

In  March,  1802,  Mr.  Jefferson  wrote  to  his  youngest 
daughter  that  he  would  be  at  home  between  the  15th 
and  20th  of  April,  and  that  he  wished  her  to  be  pre- 
par,ed  to  go  back  to  Washington  with  him  and  her  sis- 
ter; but  Congress  did  not  adjourn  as  he  expected,  and 
he  did  not  get  off  until  the  first  of  May.     The  measles 


I40  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

broke  out  in  the  family  of  Mrs.  Randolph,  and  she  did 
not  go  to  Washington.  The  same  cause  prevented 
Mrs.  Eppes  from  seeing  her  father,  but  during  the  sum- 
mer months  he  was  at  Monticello  as  usual. 

From  the  letters  of  Mr.  Jefferson  of  November  and 
December  to  his  youngest  daughter,  we  find  him  ad- 
vising her  to  have  good  spirits  and  profit  by  her  sister's 
cheerfulness.  "We  are  all  well  here,"  he  says,  "and 
hope  the  post  of  this  evening  will  bring  us  information 
of  the  health  of  all  at  Edgehill,  and  particularly  that 
Martha  and  the  new  bantling  are  both  well;  and  that 
her  example 'gives  you  good  spirits."  "Take  care  of 
yourself,  my  dearest  Marie,  and  know  that  courage  is 
as  essential  to  triumph  in  your  case  as  in  that  of  a 
soldier.  *  *  *  Not  knowing  the  time  destined  foj- 
your  expected  indisposition,  I  am  anxious  on  your  ac- 
count. You  are  prepared  to  meet  it  with  courage,  I 
hope."     And  again  he  writes: — 

"Washington,  March  3,  1804. 

"The  account  of  your  illness,  my  dearest  Marie,  was 
known  to  me  only  this  morning.  Nothing  but  the  im- 
possibility of  Congress  proceeding  a  single  step  in  my 
absence,  presents  an  insuperable  bar.  Mr.  Eppes  goes 
off,  and,  I  hope,  will  find  you  in  a  convalescent  state. 
Next  to  the  desire  that  it  may  be  so,  is  that  of  being 
speedily  informed  and  of  being  relieved  from  the  terri- 
ble anxiety  in  which  I  shall  be  till  I  hear  from  you.  God 
bless  you,  my  ever  dear  daughter,  and  preserve  you 
safe  to  the  blessing  of  us  all." 


DEATH    OF    MRS.    EPPES.  I4I 

But  she  was  not  preserved:  frail  and  sensitive,  her 
nervous  system  gave  way,  and  she  died  on  the  1 7th  of 
April,  litde  more  than  a  month  after  her  father's  letter 
was  written,  leaving  to  her  sister's  care  her  children,  the 
youngest  of  whom  was  a  young  infant.  Her  niece  in 
writing  of  her  some  years  later  said: — "She  had  been 
delicate  and  something  of  an  invalid,  if  I  remember  right, 
for  some  years.  She  was  carried  to  Monticello  from 
her  home  in  a  litter  borne  by  men.  The  distance  was 
perhaps  four  miles,  and  she  bore  the  removal  well. 
After  this,  however,  she  continued  as  before  steadily  to 
decline.  She  was  taken  out  when  the  weather  permitted, 
and  carried  around  the  lawn  in  a  carriage,  I  think 
drawn  by  men,  and  I  remember  following  the  carriage 
over  the  smooth  green  turf."^  How  long  she  lived  I  do 
not  recollect,  but  it  could  have  been  but  a  short  time. 
One  morning  I  heard  that  my  aunt  was  dying;  I  crept 
softly  from  my  nursery  to  her  chamber  door,  and  being 
alarmed  by  her  short,  hard  breathing,  ran  away  again. 
I  have  a  distinct  recollection  of  confusion  and  dismay  in 
the  household.  I  did  not  see  my  mother.  By-and-by 
one  of  the  female  servants  came  running  in  where  I  was 
with  other  persons,  to  say  that  Mrs.  Eppes  was  dead. 
The  day  passed  I  do  not  know  how.  Late  in  the  after- 
noon I  was  taken  to  the  death-chamber.  The  body  was 
covered  with  a  white  cloth,  over  which  had  been  strewn 
a  profusion  of  flowers.  A  day  or  two  after,  I  followed 
the  coffin  to  the  burying-ground  on  the  mountain  side, 
and  saw  it  consigned  to  the  earth,  where  it  has  lain  un- 
disturbed for  more  than  fifty  years. 


142  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

"My  mother  has  told  me  that  on  the  day  of  her  sister's 
death,  she  left  her  father  alone  for  some  hours.  He 
then  sent  for  her,  and  she  found  him  with  the  Bible  in 
his  hands.  He  who  has  been  so  often  and  so  harshly 
accused  of  unbelief,  he,  in  his  hour  of  intense  affliction, 
sought  and  found  consolation  in  the  sacred  volume. 
The  Comforter  was  there  for  his  true  heart  and  devout 
spirit,  even  though  his  faith  might  not  be  what  the  world 
called  orthodox. 

"There  was  something  very  touching  in  the  sight  of 
this  once  beautiful  and  still  lovely  young  woman,  fading 
away  just  as  the  spring  was  coming  on  with  its  buds 
and  blossoms — nature  revivino-  as  she  was  sinkinof  and 
closing  her  eyes  on  all  that  she  loved  best  in  life.  She 
perished  not  in  autumn  with  the  flowers,  but  as  they 
were  opening  to  the  sun  and  air  in  all  the  freshness  of 
spring.  I  think  the  weather  was  fine,  for  over  my  own 
recollection  of  these  times  there  is  a  soft,  dreamy  sort 
of  haze,  such  as  wraps  the  earth  in  warm,  dewy,  spring 
time. 

"You  know  enough  of  my  aunt's  early  history  to  be 
aware  that  she  did  not  accompany  her  father,  as  my 
mother  did,  when  he  first  went  to  France.  She  joined 
him,  I  think,  only  about  two  years  before  his  return,  and 
was  placed  in  the  same  convent  where  my  mother  re- 
ceived her  education.  Here  she  went  by  the  name  of 
Mademoiselle  Polie.  As  a  child  she  was  called  Polly  by 
her  friends.  It  was  on  her  way  to  Paris  that  she  stayed 
a  while  in  London  with  Mrs.  Adams,  and  there  is  a 
pleasing  mention  of  her  in  that  lady's  published  letters. 


MRS.    RANDOLPH    A    BUSY    MATRON.  1 43 

"I  think  the  visit  (not  a  very  long  one)  made  by  my 
mother  and  aunt  to  their  father  in  Washington,  must 
have  been  in  the  winter  of  1802-3.  My  aunt,  I  beHeve, 
was  never  there  again;  but  after  her  death,  about  the 
winter  of  1805-6,  my  mother,  with  all  her  children,  passed 
some  time  at  the  President's  House.  I  remember  that 
both  my  father  and  uncle  Eppes  were  then  in  Congress, 
but  cannot  say  whether  this  was  the  case  in  1802-3." 

Ever  delighting  in  the  society  of  his  two  children  and 
deeply  attached  to  his  home,  Mr.  Jefferson  felt  this  blow 
with  terrible  anguish.  Worthy  of  so  good  a  man's  af- 
fection, they  were  never  so  happy  as  in  being  with  their 
father,  contributing  to  his  comfort  in  numberless  wa^'^s. 
They  both  married  cousins  when  quite  young,  but  were 
never  far  from  their  childhood's  home,  and  were  always 
under  his  roof  when  he  paid  his  semi-annual  visits  there. 
Mrs.  Randolph  was  a  brilliant  w^oman ;  and  had  her 
tastes  been  less  inclined  to  domestic  life,  she  would 
have  been  a  renowned  belle.  Educated  abroad  and 
strengthened  mentally  by  travel  and  the  society  of  the 
literary  people  ever  to  be  found  about  her  father,  she  be- 
came conversant  with  knowledge's  richest  store,  and 
surpassed  most  of  the  women  of  her  day  in  accomplish- 
ments. Though  widely  different  in  other  respects,  there 
was  much  resemblance  between  the  President  and  Vice- 
President  in  the  intensity  of  their  love  for  their  daugh- 
ters. Theodosia  Burr  and  Martha  Jefferson  will  be 
familiar  names  so  long  as  the  history  of  this  country 
shall  be  among  the  things  of  earth.     Both  intellectual 


144  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

companions  of  their  only  parents,  both  ardently  attached 
to  fathers  they  deemed  the  wisest  and  greatest  of  earth 
— they  have  become  forever  linked  with  the  life  and 
times  of  each,  and  occupy  historical  positions  next  to  their 
widower  fathers  in  social  and  semi-official  rank.  Both 
were  great  men,  adored  by  daughters  gifted  and  good. 
Theodosia  Burr  has  thrown  around  her  father's  name  a 
romantic  interest  which  veils  many  infirmities,  and  adds 
lustre  to  the  traits  which  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  re- 
deemed him. 

Mrs.  Adams,  who  had  known  Maria  Jefferson  and 
loved  her  when  a  child,  overcame  the  pride  she  had  al- 
lowed to  control  her  silent  pen,  and  wrote  to  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son, awakening  in  his  heart  tender  feelings  of  friendship 
too  long  allowed  to  lie  dormant.  He  replied  that  her 
former  kindnesses  to  his  lost  child  made  a  deep  impreci- 
sion on  her  mind,  and  that  to  the  last,  on  our  meetings 
after  long  separations,  "  whether  I  had  heard  lately  of 
you,"  and  "  how  you  did,"  w^ere  among  the  earliest  of  her 
inquiries.     Mrs.  Adams'  letter  was  as  follows : 

•' QuiNCY,  20(h  May,  1S04. 

"  Had  you  been  no  other  than  the  private  inhabitants 
of  Monticello,  I  should,  ere  this  time,  have  addressed  you 
with  that  sympathy  which  a  recent  event  has  awakened 
in  my  bosom  ;  but  reasons  of  various  kinds  withheld  my 
pen,  until  the  powerful  feelings  of  my  heart  burst  through 
the  restraint,  and  called  upon  me  to  shed  the  tear  of  sor- 
row over  the  departed  remains  of  your  beloved  and  de- 
serving daughter — an  event  which  I  sincerely  mourn. 


MRS.    ADAMS     LEITER    TO    MR.    JEFFERSON.  1 45 

"The  attachment  which  I  formed  for  her  when  yon 
committed  her  to  my  care,  upon  her  arrival  in  a  foreign 
land,  under  circumstances  peculiarly  interesting-,  has  re 
mained  with  me  to  this  hour:  and  the  account  of  her 
death,  which  I  read  in  a  late  paper,  recalled  to  my  recol- 
lection the  tender  scene  of  her  separation  from  me,  when, 
with  the  strongest  sensibility,  she  clung  round  my  neck, 
and  wet  my  bosom  with  her  tears,  saying,  *  Oh  !  now  I 
have  learned  to  love  you,  why  will  they  take  me  from  you  ? ' 

"  It  has  been  some  time  since  I  conceived  that  any 
event  in  this  life  could  call  forth  feelings  of  mutual  sym- 
pathy. But  I  know  how  closely  entwined  around  a 
parent's  heart  are  those  cords  which  bind  the  paternal  ;o 
the  filial  bosom  ;  and,  when  snapped  asunder,  how  ago- 
nizing the  pangs.  I  have  tasted  of  the  bittef  cup,  ar  d 
bow  with  reverence  and  submission  before  the  gre;  it 
Dispenser  of  it,  without  whose  permission  and  overrulir  f 
providence  not  a  sparrow  falls  to  the  ground.  That  yc  u 
may  derive  comfort  and  consolation  in  this  day  of  your 
sorrow  and  affliction  from  that  only  source  calculated  to 
heal  the  wounded  heart — a  firm  belief  in  the  being,  per- 
fection and  attributes  of  God — is  the  sincere  and  ardent 
wish  of  her  who  once  took  pleasure  in  subscribing  her 
self  your  friend,  "Abigail  Adams." 

Mr.  Jefferson  was  inaugurated  President  a  second  time 
on  the  4th  of  March,  1S05,  then  in  the  sixty-second  year 
of  his  age.  The  following  winter  his  only  daughter,  with 
all  her  children,  passed  most  of  the   season  in  Wash- 


146  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

ington.  She  never  made  but  two  visits  there  ;  one  with 
her  sister,  the  second  year  of  his  first  term,  and  this 
last  one  in  the  winter  of  1805-6,  after  her  sister's  death. 
Means  of  travel  were  not  so  rapid  or  pleasant  as  now, 
and  the  laborious  and  extremely  tedious  undertaking  of 
travelling  so  far  in  a  carriage  was  sufficient  to  dampen 
the  desire  of  living  for  a  few  alternate  months  with  her 
father.  The  unhealthy  condition  of  Washington  at  that 
time,  its  low  and  marshy  condition,  engendering  disease, 
rendered  it  absolutely  necessary  for  those  unacclimated 
to  be  out  of  its  limits  during  the  hot  months  of  summer. 
The  increasing  cares  of  children  and  the  duties  of  Vir- 
ginia matrons  also  deterred  Mrs,  Randolph  from  be- 
coming, as  we  must  only  regret  she  did  not,  permanently 
located  in  the  President's  House. 

Her  memory  is  so  fragrant  with  the  perfume  of  purity 
and  saintly  sweetness,  that  it  is  a  privilege  to  dwell  and 
muse  upon  a  theme  so  elevating.  The  world  has  not 
yet  developed  a  more  harmonious,  refined  or  superior 
type  of  womanhood  than  the  daughters  of  Virginia  in 
the  last  century.  Reared  in  ease  and  plenty,  taught  the 
virtues  that  ennoble,  and  valuing  their  good  name  no 
less  than  prizing  their  family  lineage,  they  were  the  most 
delightful  specimens  of  womanhood  ever  extant.  Most 
particularly  was  Martha  Jefferson  of  this  class,  whose 
image  is  fast  losing  originality  in  the  modern  system  of 
utilitarian  education.  Her  father's  and  her  husband's 
great  enemy  pronounced  her  "  the  sweetest  woman  in 
Virginia ;  "  and  the  assurance  comes  laden  with  the  tes- 


■4^'-'iP-^^ 


JEFFERSON  S    RETIREMENT    TO    MuNTICELLO.  1 47 

timony  of  many  tongues,  that  her  existence  was  one  of 
genial  sunshine  and  peace.  Are  not  such  natures  doubly 
blessed,  first,  in  the  happiness  they  secure  to  themselves, 
and,  secondly,  in  the  blessing  they  are  to  those  who  walk 
in  the  light  of  their  example?  With  the  retirement  of 
Mr,  Jefferson  from  public  life,  came  a  new  trouble  in  the 
shape  of  innumerable  visitors,  and  the  seventeen  years 
he  lived  at  Monticello  was  one  continued  scene  of  new 
faces  and  old  friends.  Even  after  the  loss  of  property 
and  accumulated  debts,  he  was  compelled  to  entertain 
thoughtless,  crowds  who  made  pilgrimages  to  his  shrine. 
Time  and  again  he  would  go  to  an  adjoining  estate  to 
secure  that  rest  and  quiet  so  essential  to  his  health;  but 
these  visits  were  never  of  long  duration,  for  he  could 
not  consent  to  be  separated  from  his  daughter,  even 
though  accompanied  by  his  grandchildren.  As  the 
shadows  began  to  darken  round  his  earth-life,  and  bank- 
ruptcy to  hover  over  him,  he  turned  with  redoubled 
affection  to  this  idol,  and  she  was  strong  and  faithful  to 
the  last.  Mother  and  sister  she  had  buried,  and  she 
was  yet  strong  enough  to  see  her  husband  and  father 
taken. 

"There  were  few  eminent  men  of  our  country  who  did 
not  visit  Mr.  Jefferson  in  his  retirement,  to  say  nothing 
of  distinguished  foreigners."  But  all  visitors  were  not 
as  agreeable  as  "eminent  men."  "There  are  a  number 
of  persons  now  living  who  have  seen  groups  of  ter 
strangers,  of  both  sexes,  planted  in  the  passage  bel\^een 
his  study  and  dining-room,  consulting  their  watches,  and 


HS  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

waiting  for  him  to  pass  from  one  to  the  other  to  his 
dinner,  so  that  they  could  momentarily  stare  at  him.  A 
female  once  punched  through  a  window-pane  of  the  house 
with  her  parasol  to  get  a  better  view  of  him.  When 
sitting  in  the  shade  of  his  porticoes  to  enjoy  the 
coolness  of  the  approaching  evening,  parties  of  men 
and  women  would  sometimes  approach  within  a  dozen 
yards,  and  gaze  at  him  point-blank  undl  they  had 
looked  their  fill,  as  they  would  have  gazed  on  a  lion  in  a 
menagerie." 

Mrs.  Randolph  was  "the  apple  of  her  father's  eye." 
All  his  letters  bear  witness  to  his  affection,  and  all  his 
life  records  this  prominent  sentiment  of  his  heart.  A 
gentleman  writing  to  him  for  his  views  on  a  proper 
course  of  education  for  woman,  he  takes  the  opportunity 
of  complimenting  her  unconsciously.  "A  plan  of  female 
education,"  he  says,  "has  never  been  a  subject  of  syste- 
matic contemplation  with  me.  It  has  occupied  my  atten- 
tion so  far  only  as  the  education  of  my  own  daughters 
occasionally  required.  Considering  that  they  would  be 
placed  in  a  country  situation  where  little  aid  could  be 
obtained  from  abroad,  I  thought  it  essential  to  give  them 
a  solid  education,  which  might  enable  them — when  be- 
come mothers — to  educate  their  own  daughters,  and  even 
to  direct  the  course  for  sons,  should  their  fathers  be  lost, 
or  incapable,  or  inattentive. 

"  My  surviving  daughter  accordingly,  the  mother  of 
many  daughters  as  well  as  sons,  has  made  their  educa- 
tion the  object  of  her  life,  and  being  a  better  judge  of 


JULY    4TII,    1826.  149 

the  practical  part  than  myself,  it  is  with  her  aid  and 
that  of  one  of  her  cleves,  that  I  shall  subjoin  a  catalogue 
of  the  books  for  such  a  course  of  reading  as  we  have 
practised." 

Again,  in  a  letter  to  his  grandson,  Thomas  Jefferson 
Randolph,  he  sa\'s : 

"  You  kindly  encourage  me  to  keep  up  my  spirits  ;  but 
oppressed  with  disease,  debility,  age  and  embarrassed 
affairs,  this  is  difficult.  For  myself,  I  should  not  regard 
a  prostration  of  fortune;  but  I  am  overwhelmed  at  the 
prospect  of  the  situation  in  which  I  may  leave  my 
family.  My  dear  and  beloved  daughter,  the  cherished 
<  ompanion  of  my  early  life,  and  nurse  of  my  age,  and 
her  children,  rendered  as  dear  to  me  as  if  my  own,  from 
having  lived  with  me  from  their  cradle,  left  in  a  comfort- 
less situation,  hold  up  to  me  nothing  but  future  gloom; 
>,  nd  I  should  not  care  were  life  to  end  with  the  line  I  am 
writing,  were  it  not  that  in  the  unhappy  state  of  mind 
u'hich  your  father's  misfortunes  have  brought  upon  him, 
1  may  yet  be  of  some  avail  to  the  family," 

Ex-President  Jefferson  died  the  4th  of  July,  1826,  and 
at  nearly  the  same  hour  passed  away  the  spirit  of  John 
Adams.  He  lingered  a  little  behind  Jefferson,  and  his 
last  words,  uttered  in  the  failing  articulation  of  the 
dying,  were:  "Jefferson  still  survives,"  Mrs.  Randolph 
left  no  written  account  of  the  scene.  On  the  2d  of  July, 
Mr.  Jefferson  handed  her  a  little  casket.  On  opening 
it,  after  his  death,  she  found  a  paper  on  which  he  had 
written  the  lines  of  Moore,  commencinof — 


150  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

"  It  is  not  the  tear  at  this  moment  shed 
When  the  cold  turf  has  just  been  Iain  o'er  him  " — 

There  is  also  a  touchino-  tribute  to  his  daughter,  de« 
clarlng  that  while  he  "goes  to  his  fathers,"  "the  last 
pang  of  life"  is  in  parting  from  her;  that  "two  seraphs'* 
"  long  shrouded  in  death  "  (meaning  doubtless  his  wife 
and  younger  daughter)  "  await  him  ;  "  that  he  will  "  bear 
them  her  love." 

After  this  all  is  sadness.  To  satisfy  creditors,  all  the 
property  was  sold,  and  the  proceeds  did  not  fully  meet 
the  debts. 

"When  it  became  known  that  Montlcello  had  gone» 
or  must  go  out  of  the  hands  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  family, 
and  that  his  only  child  was  left  without  an  independent 
provision,  another  exhibition  of  public  feeling  took  place. 
The  Legislatures  of  South  Carolina  and  Louisiana 
promptly  voted  her  ;^  10,000  each,  and  the  stocks  they 
created  for  the  purpose  sold  for  ^21,800.  Other  plans 
were  started  in  other  States,  which,  had  they  been  car- 
ried out,  would  have  embraced  a  liberal  provision  for 
Mr.  Jefferson's  descendants.  But,  as  is  usual  on  such 
occasions,  the  people  in  each  locality  obtained  exagger- 
ated impressions  of  what  was  doing  in  others,  and  slack- 
ened their  own  exertions  until  the  feeling  that  prompted 
them  died  away." 

Two  years  passed,  and  Mrs.  Randolph  was  called 
upon  to  see  her  husband  die,  and  she  of  all  her  name  re- 
mained to  link  the  memory  of  her  ancestors  v/ith  tliose 
of  her  descendants. 


LETTER    FROM    MRS.    TRIST   TO    MRS.    HOLLOW AV.       15I 

To  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Virginia  Jefferson  Trist,  I  am 
indebted  for  this  narrative  of  the  closing  eight  years  of 
Mrs.  Randolph's  life; 

"  My  Dear  Mrs.  Hollow  ay: 

"  I  wish  it  were  in  my  power  to  answer  your  inquiries 
more  satisfactorily  than  I  am  able  to  do.  My  recol- 
lections of  my  mother,  at  so  early  a  period  of  my  life  as 
the  one  referred  to,  are  altogedier  childish  and  imperfect. 
It  is  true,  my  very  earliest  recollections  are  connected 
with  a  winter  passed  in  the  White  House  during  my 
grandfather's  Presidency,  but  they  are  so  few  and  so 
scanty  and  childish,  as  they  rise  before  me  in  the  mists 
of  long  past  years,  that  really  nothing  worth  offering 
you  suggests  itself  to  my  mind. 

"My  mother  was  born  in  September,  1772,  and  had 
therefore  entered  her  29th  year  when  her  father  was 
elected  President.  She  was  then  the  mother  of  five 
children,  having  married  at  the  early  age  of  seventeen. 
Thus  surrounded  by  a  family  of  young  children,  she 
could  not  pass  much  of  her  time  in  Washington  ;  she  did, 
however,  spend  two  winters  there,  the  first  in  1802—3, 
the  second  in  1805-6.  Her  health  was  very  bad  on  the 
first  of  these  two  occasions  of  her  visitino-  her  father. 
Having  an  abscess  on  her  lungs,  she  was  advised  by  her 
physician  to  go  to  pass  the  winter  in  Bermucfe,  and  for 
this  purpose  left  her  home  in  Albemarle,  Virginia,  to  go 
as  far  as  Washington  in  her  travelling  carriage — the 
only  mode  at  that  day  of  making  the  journey  of  four 


152  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

days'  duration.  During  this  journey  the  abscess  broke, 
and  she  felt  so  much  relieved  that  her  croinof  to  Bermuda 
was  no  longer  considered  necessary,  and  she  passed  that 
winter  with  her  father.  I  believe  my  father  was  in  Con- 
gress at  that  time.  My  mother's  only  sister,  Marie  Jef- 
ferson, then  Mrs.  John  W.  Eppes,  was  also  a  member  of 
her  father's  family  that  winter,  her  husband  being  in 
Congress.  There  was  a  difference  of  six  years  in  the 
ages  of  the  sisters ;  my  mother,  who  was  the  oldest,  had 
accompanied  her  father  to  France,  where  she  was  edu- 
cated under  his  eyes.  My  aunt  had  afterward  followed 
them  to  Paris  under  the  wing  of  Mrs.  John  Adams,  in 
whose  correspondence  mention  Is  made  of  her.  The 
three  becarne  thus  reunited  only  two  years  before  their 
return  home,  after  which  she  (my  aunt)  was  placed  at 
school  in  Philadelphia.  She  grew  up  possessed  of  rare 
beauty  and  loveliness  of  person  as  well  as  disposition  • 
but  her  health  was  delicate,  and  her  natural  modesty 
and  timidity  w^as  so  great  as  to  make  her  averse  to  so- 
ciety. Underv^alulng  her  own  personal  advantages,  she 
regarded  with  the  warmest  admiration,  as  well  as  sisterly 
affection,  her  sister's  more  positive  character  and  bril- 
liant intellectual  endowments.  My  mother  was  not  a 
beauty;  her  features  were  less  regular  tlian  her  sister's, 
her  face  owing  its  charms  more  to  its  expressiveness, 
beaming  as  it  ever  was  with  kindness,  good  humor,  gayety 
and  wIl  She  was  tall  and  very  graceful,  notwithstand- 
ing a  certain  degree  of  embonpoint.  Her  complexion 
naturally  fair,  her  hair  of  a  dark  chestnut  color,  very  long 


THE    TWO    SISTERS.  I  53 

and  very  abundant.  I  have  always  heard  that  her  man- 
ners were  uncommonly  attractive  from  their  vivacity, 
amiability,  and  high  breeding-,  and  her  conversation  was 
charming'.  These  two  sisters  were  the  ladies  of  the 
White  House  in  1802-3.  My  mother  was  very  sociable 
and  enjoyed  society.  I  remember  hearing  her  mention  a 
circumstance  which  seemed  to  Illustrate  the  natural  dif- 
ference of  their  characters.  She  said  one  day,  laughingly, 
'  Marie,  if  I  had  your  beauty,  I  should  not  feel  so  indif- 
ferent as  you  do  about  it.'  My  aunt  looked  vexed  and 
pained,  and  observed,  '  Compliments  to  a  pretty  face 
v/ere  indications  that  no  intellectual  attractions  existed 
in  its  possessor.' 

"From  their  contemporary,  Mrs.  Madison,  I  have 
heard,  that  that  winter  when  the  sisters  were  eoino- 
together  Into  society,  although  on  entering  a  room  all 
eyes  were  turned  on  the  younger,  who  became  a  centre 
of  attraction,  particularly  to  the  gentlemen,  that  by 
degrees  my  mother's  vivacity  and  the  charms  of  her 
conversation  and  manners  drew  around  her  a  circle  of 
admirers  who  delighted  in  listening  to  her  even  more 
than  In  looking  at  her  beautiful  sister.  These  two  sis- 
ters lived  in  perfect  harmon)-,  linked  together  by  the 
warmest  mutual  affection,  as  well  as  their  common  de- 
votion to  their  father,  whom  both  idolized. 

"My  mother's  second  visit  to  her  father  was  in  the 
winter  of  1805-6.  She  had  then  lost  her  sister.  My 
aunt  left  two  children,  Francis  and  Maria  Jefferson;  the 
little  girl  was  only  a  few  months  old  and  did  not  lonor 


154  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

survive  her  mother.  Francis  passed  that  winter  under 
my  mother's  care,  his  father  being  still  in  Congress. 
One  of  my  brothers  was  born  that  same  winter;  the  first 
birth  which  took  place  in  the  White  House.  He  was 
called  James  Madison.  Mrs.  Madison  was  an  intimate 
and  much  valued  friend  of  my  mother's,  and  her  amiable, 
playful  manners  with  children  attracted  my  sisters  and 
myself  and  made  her  a  great  favorite  with  us.  Among 
my  childish  recollections  is  her  'running  away  with  us,' 
as  she  playfully  expressed  it,  when  she  took  us  away 
with  her  in  her  carriage,  to  crive  us  a  drive  and  then 
take  us  home  with  her  to  play  with  two  of  her  nieces 
near  our  ages,  and  lunch  on  cranberry  tarts.  My  old- 
est sister,  Anne,  completed  her  fifteenth  year  that  win- 
ter, and  was  not  yet  going  into  society;  but  my  mother 
permitted  her  to  go  to  a  ball  under  the  care  of  a  lady 
friend,  who  requested  that  my  sister  might  go  to  her 
house  to  dress  and  accompany  her  own  daughter  near 
her  age  to  the  ball.  My  sister  excited  great  admiration 
on  that  occasion.  She  had  a  'remarkably  classic  head,' 
as  I  remember  hearin^j  an  Italian  artist  remark  at  Mon- 
ticello  upon  seeing  her  there  after  she  was  the  mother 
of  several  children.  Her  hair  was  a  beautiful  auburn, 
and  her  complexion  had  a  delicate  bloom  very  becom- 
ing to  her,  and  with  the  freshness  of  fifteen  I  can 
readily  imagine  how  strikingly  handsome  she  was.  My 
mother,  accompanied  by  Mrs.  Cutts — the  mother  of 
Gen.  Richard  D.  Cutts — went  to  the  ball  at  a  later 
hour.     She  was  very  short-sighted,  and  seeing"  my  sister 


PLEASANT    REMINISCENCES.  I  55 

on  entering  the  ball-room  she  asked  Mrs.  Ciitts,  'Who 
is  that  beautiful  girl?'  Mrs.  Cutts,  much  amused,  an- 
swered, 'Why,  woman,  are  you  so  unnatural  a  mother 
as  not  to  recognize  your  own  daughter?' 

"My  sister  died  many  years  ago;  if  she  were  now 
living,  she  could  no  doubt  tell  much  of  what  happened 
that  winter  in  the  White  House.  She  formed  some 
pleasant  acquaintances  in  Washington,  and  made  some 
friends  with  whom  she  corresponded  for  years.  I  have 
some  recollections  of  the  house  as  it  was  before  being 
burned  by  the  British,  and  as  it  was  rebuilt  on  the  same 
plan,  I  have  since  recognized  parts  of  it  most  familiar 
to  my  eyes.  A  lasting  impression  was  made  upon  my 
memory  by  the  reception  in  one  of  the  drawing-rooms, 
of  the  Tunisian  Ambassador  and  suite;  the  brilliantly 
lighted  room,  the  odd  appearance  to  my  puzzled  senses 
of  the  rich  Turkish  dresses,  and  my  alarm  at  receiving 
a  kiss  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Ambassador,  whilst 
one  of  my  sisters,  just  two  years  old,  whose  Saxon 
complexion  and  golden  hair  made  her  a  beautiful  pic- 
ture, was  honored  by  a  kiss  from  the  Ambassador,  of 
which  she  has  no  recollection.  I  heard  of  the  elegant 
presents  brought  by  them  for  my  mother  and  aunt,  and 
which  were  publicly  exhibited  and  sold.  My  mother 
wished  to  purchase  one  of  the  shawls  intended  for  her, 
but  when  Mrs.  Madison  went  to  make  the  purchase  she 
found  that  she  had  been  anticipated  by  another  person. 
The  talk  about  these  presents  could  not,  of  course,  fail 
to  greatly  excite  my  childish  curiosity,  but  my  desire  to 


T56  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

see  them  was  not  gratified.  My  grandfather  did  not 
allow  them  to  be  broutrht  to  the  President's  House,  as 
it  was  then  called — a  name  which,  it  seems,  was  too 
plain  English  to  suit  modern  notions  of  dignified  refine- 
ment, for  it  has  been  superseded  by  the  more  stately 
appellation  of  'Executive  Mansion.' 

"From  its  being  the  cause  of  m}-  disappointment  in 
seeing  those  beautiful  specimens  of  Oriental  luxury 
and  taste,  my  grandfather's  strictness  on  that  occasion 
served  to  impress  upon  my  mind,  earlier  than  it  other- 
wise would  have  been  impressed,  a  trait  of  his  character 
which  afterward  became  as  familiar  to  me,  and  as  nat- 
ural a  part  of  himself,  as  the  sound  of  his  voice — I 
mean  his  scrupulousness  in  conforming  to  the  laws  in 
all  thinofs,  ereat  or  small. 

\ 

"To  return  to  my  mother,  it  is  to  that  period  that 
belongs  a  remark  which  long  afterward  I  was  told  had 
been  made  of  her  by  the  Marquis  de  Yrugo,  the  Span- 
ish Ambassador,  that  she  was  fitted  to  grace  any  court 
in  Europe.  I  was  then  too  young  to  know  and  ap- 
preciate her  as  I  afterward  came  to  do.  I  have  never 
known  any  one  who  accomplished  as  much  as  she  did, 
making  use  of  all  she  had  been  taught,  in  an  education 
which  fitted  her  for  the  performance  of  the  various 
duties  which  fell  to  her  lot.  After  my  grandfather  re- 
tired from  public  life,  she  became  the  mistress  of  his 
house.  My  father  visited  his  farm  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Monticello  daily,  and  during  the  busy  season  of  har- 
vest my  mother  always  stayed  with  him  while   it  lasted. 


A    LARGE    FAMILY.  I  57 

My  mother  educated  her  six  daughters  unassisted  by 
any  one.  During  the  summer  months,  the  crowds  of 
visitors  to  my  grandfather  who  filled  the  house  and  en- 
grossed much  of  her  time,  interrupted  our  studies  and 
made  us  lose  much  precious  time;  but  she  had  the  art 
of  awakening  an  interest  in  what  she  taught  us,  and 
exciting  a  desire  for  improvement,  which  made  us  make 
the  most  of  the  quiet  winter  months  which  she  could 
devote  to  us.  She  was  a  good  musician,  and  was  fond 
of  gardening;  she  superintended  personally  all  house- 
hold matters,  and  in  the  winter  evenings  when  my 
grandfather  was  seated  In  his  arm-chair  in  the  chimney 
corner,  a  small  candle-stand  was  placed  between  them, 
and  they  spent  the  evenings  reading.  She  had  all  the 
tastes  which  made  country  life  agreeable,  without  losing 
her  relish  for  the  attractions  of  town  life.  Such  was 
my  mother  as  I  knew  her,  and  I  remember  her  most 
perfectly.  She  was  the  mother  of  twelve  children, 
eleven  of  whom  lived  to  grow  up. 

"My  youngest  sister's  name  was  Septimia.  She  was 
my  mother's  seventh  daughter,  and  her  name  was  the 
occasion  of  a  poetic  compliment  to  my  mother  from  an 
old  Portuguese  gentleman,  the  Abbe  Correa  de  Serra, 
who  visited  my  grandfather  every  year  during  his  long 
residence  in  Philadelphia.  He  was  for  several  years 
Portuguese  Ambassador  to  the  United  States.  His 
learning,  his  interesting  and  instructive  conversation, 
'he  amiable,  child-like  simplicity  of  his  character  and 
manners,  made  this  old  philosopher  alike  attractive  to 


158  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

the  older  and  younger  members  of  the  family.  His 
visits  were  enjoyed  by  us  all,  from  my  grandfather  and 
mother  down  to  the  youngest  child  of  the  house,  only 
two  years  old.  In  allusion  to  her  name  of  Septimia,  he 
said  to  my  mother,  '  Your  daughters,  Mrs.  Randolph, 
are  like  the  Pleiades ;  they  are  called  seven,  but  six  only 
are  seen.'     The  second  daughter  died  an  infant. 

"My  mother  survived  her  father  upward  of  ten  years, 
and  her  husband  about  eight  years  ;  during  that  period 
losing  a  grown  son,  James  Madison  Randolph,  born  in 
the  President's  House. 

"In  the  autumn  after  my  grandfather's  death,  she 
went  to  Boston,  and  passed  the  winter  in  the  house  of 
her  son-in-law,  Mr.  Joseph  Coolidge,  of  that  city,  having 
with  her  the  two  youngest  children,  Septimia  and 
George  Wythe,  who  went  to  day-schools  during  that 
winter.  Septimia  was  the  only  one  of  her  daughters 
who  ever  went  to  school  at  all ;  my  other  sisters  and 
myself  having  our  education  conducted  by  our  mother; 
she  being  our  only  teacher,  assisted  somewhat  by  her 
father.  The  following  summer  she  accompanied  my 
sister,  Mrs.  Coolidge,  to  Cambridge,  where  the  two  chil- 
dren again  attended  day-schools.  My  eldest  brother, 
Mr.  Jefferson  Randolph,  was  his  grandfather's  executor; 
he  had  been  in  all  business  affairs  the  staff  of  his  de- 
clining years,  and  afterward  became  a  father  to  his 
younger  brothers.  The  sale  of  furniture,  pictures,  and 
other  movables  at  Monticello,  took  place  the  winter 
following   my   grandfather's    death,    after   my  mother's 


RETURNS   TO    MONTICELLO.  1 59 

departure  for  Boston.  The  rest  of  the  family  passed 
that  winter  in  my  brother's  house,  then  the  ensuing 
summer  at  Monticello,  a  purchaser  for  which  could  not 
be  found  until  two  years  or  more  after.  My  mother 
remained  in  Cambridge  the  second  winter,  as  a  boarder, 
with  her  two  children,  in  the  family  of  Mr.  Stearns,  law- 
professor  of  Harvard  College,  to  whose  excellent  family 
she  became  much  attached. 

"  My  sister  Cornelia  went  to  join  her  in  Cambridge, 
and  the  two  were  alternately  in  Boston  and  Cambridge, 
the  one  with  Mrs.  Coolidge,  and  the  other  with  the 
children. 

"In  the  spring  of  1828,  my  mother  returned  to  Mon- 
ticello, accompanied  by  Cornelia  and  Septimia,  leaving 
my  brother  at  a  boarding  school  in  the  country  near 
Cambridge.  This  being  their  first  separation,  it  was 
felt  most  acutely  on  both  sides,  for  he,  just  ten  years 
old,  was  an  unusually  sensitive  and  warm-hearted  boy, 
and  as  the  'youngling  of  her  flock,'  was  the  darling  of 
her  heart.  He  was  to  remain  behind  among  strangers, 
whilst  his  mother,  the  object  of  his  passionate  fondness 
and  devoted  attachment,  was  to  return  without  him  to 
that  dear  old  home  he  so  well  remembered  and  loved. 
My  mother,  on  her  return  to  Monticello  after  an  ab- 
sence of  eighteen  months,  found  my  father  very  ill.  He 
had  been  a  part  of  the  previous  winter  in  Georgia,  en- 
gaged as  commissioner  on  the  part  of  the  United  States 
in  establishing  a  boundary  line  between  that  State  and 
Florida.     His  letters  spoke  of  his  enjoying  the  climate, 


l60  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

and  he  enjoyed  also  the  opportunities  which  he  there 
found  of  gratifying  his  fondness  for  botanical  studies  ; 
but  he  returned  home  in  very  bad  health,  and  after  a 
few  months  of  severe  suffering,  died  on  the  20th  of  June, 
1 8 28,  in  his  sixtieth  year.  Monticello  was  sold  the 
following  winter.  My  mother  took  leave  of  her  beloved 
home  in  December — that  home  which  had  been  the 
scene  of  her  happiest  years,  where  she  had  enjoyed  her 
dear  father's  society,  and  been  the  solace  of  his  age  ; 
where  her  children  had  been,  most  of  them,  born  and 
grown  up  around  her,  and  where  her  own  happy  child- 
hood had  been  passed  before  the  death  of  her  mother. 

"She  removed  with  her  family  to  the  house  of  her  son 
Jefferson,  My  mother  lived  a  year  with  my  brother's 
family,  during  which  time  she  formed  a  plan  of  keeping 
a  school  for  young  ladies,  assisted  by  her  unmarried 
daughters,  who  were  to  be  teachers  under  her  superin- 
tendence. This  plan  was,  however,  rendered  unneces- 
sary by  the  donations  so  generously  made  her  by  the 
States  of  South  Carolina  and  Louisiana,  of  $10,000 
each.  About  this  time,  also,  Mr.  Clay,  then  Secretary 
of  State,  prompted  by  the  wish  to  do  something  in  aid 
of  Mr.  Jefferson's  daughter,  offered  to  my  husband,  who 
had  just  then  commenced  the  practice  of  the  law,  one 
of  the  higher  clerkships  in  the  State  Department,  with  a 
salary  of  $1,400.  This  offer  was  accepted  by  him,  with 
the  understanding  that  my  mother  and  sisters  would  go 
with  us  to  live  in  Washington  as  one  family.  In  the 
autumn  of  1829,  we  bade  adieu  to  our  native  mountains, 


REMOVES    TO    WASHINGTON.  l6l 

and  removed  to  Washington.  We  occupied  a  small 
house  with  a  pretty  garden,  pleasantly  situated,  where 
we  lived  together,  forming  one  family,  consisting  of 
seven  grown  persons  and  four  children,  the  two  young- 
est being  my  own,  and  the  other  two  orphans  of  my 
eldest  sister,  who  had  been  taken  by  their  grandmother 
to  her  home  at  Monticello,  while  her  father  was  still 
living. 

"  Upon  her  arrival  in  Washington,  my  mother  was 
visited  by  everybody,  and  received  the  most  marked 
attentions.  The  President  and  the  Heads  of  Depar/- 
ments  called  upon  her ;  the  lady  of  the  White  House 
of  that  day,  Mrs.  Donelson,  and  the  wives  of  the  cab- 
inet ministers,  laid  aside  etiquette,  and  paid  her  the 
respect  of  a  first  call. 

"General  Jackson,  during  the  whole  time  of  her  rc;- 
idence  in  Washington,  never  omitted  making  her  a  vis  it 
once  a  year,  accompanied  usually  by  the  Secretary  of 
State.  As  a  tribute  to  her  father's  memory,  these  marks 
of  respect  were  peculiarly  gratifying.  Her  disposition 
was  naturally  cheerful  and  social,  though  she  was  not 
dependent  on  society  for  happiness.  Her  habits  of 
regular  occupation,  possessing  as  she  did  various  tastes, 
the  cultivation  of  which  afforded  her  variety,  and  in- 
creased her  interest  in  life;  and  surrounded  as  she  was 
by  a  large,  cheerful  family  circle,  she  lived  contentedly 
in  the  country,  even  during  the  winters  at  Monticello, 
which  were  seldom  enlivened  by  visitors.  That  season 
was  devoted  principally  to  the  education  of  her  children; 


1 62  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

the  constant  crowds  of  visitors  durincr  the  rest  of  the 
year  leaving  her  very  Httle  time  not  engrossed  by  house- 
hold cares,  arising  from  the  duties  of  hospitality. 

"  During  the  years  which  she  passed  in  Washington, 
she  resumed  many  of  her  old  occupations ;  her  taste  for 
flowers  revived,  and  good  music  afforded  her  enjoyment, 
although  she  no  longer  played  much  herself  after  my 
grandfather's  death.  Her  habits  of  readingf  she  never 
lost,  and  she  always  began  the  day  with  some  chapter 
of  the  New  Testament.  She  was  an  early  riser  in 
summer  and  in  winter.  She  liked  an  east  window  in 
her  bedroom,  because  it  enabled  her  to  read  in  bed 
before  the  household  w^ere  stirring.  Every  year  she 
visited  alternately  my  elder  brother  at  his  residence 
near  Monticello,  in  the  southwest  mountains  of  Virginia, 
or  my  sister,  Mrs.  Joseph  Coolidge,  in  Boston. 

"In  the  spring  of  1831  she  was  called  on  to  make  a 
painful  sacrifice,  such  as  mothers  only  can  appreciate — 
she  gave  her  consent  to  George's  entering  the  navy. 
After  passing  a  winter  with  her  in  Washington,  he  had 
entered  a  school  near  the  University  of  Virginia,  when 
a  midshipman's  warrant  was  procured  for  him.  At  his 
boarding-school  in  Massachusetts,  his  conduct  had  gained 
for  him  the  respect,  confidence,  and  good-will  of  all, 
teachers  and  associates;  but  he  was  yet  a  mere  child, 
and  his  mother's  heart  sickened  at  the  thought  of  his 
o-oino-  forth  alone  to  encounter  the  naval  perils,  as  well 
as  brave  the  hardships  of  a  sea-faring  life.  She  had, 
however,  the  fortitude  to  approve  of  what  was  judged 


MOTHER    AXD    SONS.  1 63 

best  for  his  future,  and  her  sorrow  was  borne  with 
the  patient  and  cheerful  resignation  which  belonged  to 
her  character. 

"  The  recollection  of  that  parting  as  a  trial  for  her 
stirs  up,  even  at  this  distance  of  time,  the  long  dormant 
feelings  which  I  thought  my  last  tear  had  been  shed  for. 
You,  dear  madam,  will  excuse  this  revival  of  incidents 
not  required  for  your  sketch,  and  will  use  such  things 
only  as  may  have  an  interest  for  the  public.  His  first 
cruise  lasted  eighteen  months,  in  the  U.  S.  ship  John 
Adams,  which  went  up  the  Mediterranean  as  far  as 
Constantinople ;  and  one  of  its  incidents  was  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  cholera  on  board.  He  fjot  back  to  us 
safely,  however,  and  my  mother  was  rewarded  for  her 
sufferings  by  the  encomiums  elicited  by  his  conduct  and 
character  from  the  officers  under  whom  he  had  served, 
and  their  predicdons  as  to  the  useful  and  honorable 
career  which  lay  before  him.  She  continued  to  hear 
him  highly  spoken  of,  and  to  learn  that  he  was  respected 
by  all  who  knew  him,  and  that  his  leisure  hours  on  board 
the  ship  were  devoted  to  reading  and  study.  In  the 
interval  between  his  cruises,  he  was  to  stay  with  her  in 
Washinofton. 

*'  In  the  second  year  of  her  residence  there,  she  had 
the  happiness  of  having  my  brother  Lewis,  another  of 
her  younger  children,  added  to  her  family.  He  obtained 
a  clerkship,  which  afforded  him  a  post  while  he  was 
qualifying  himself  for  the  practice  of  the  law,  and  he 
remained  with  us  until  his  marriage,  which  took  place  a 


1 64.  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

few  years  later.  He  was  highly  gifted,  remarkably 
handsome,  and  shone  in  the  social  circle,  but  never 
formed  one  of  the  idle  throng  always  to  be  found  in 
cities.  Very  domestic  in  his  tastes  and  habits,  his  leisure 
hours  were  divided  between  his  professional  studies  and 
associates  belonging  to  the  circle  in  which  his  family 
moved.  He  married  Miss  Martin,  a  niece  of  Mrs. 
Donelson,  with  whom  he  became  acquainted  at  the 
*  White  House,'  where  she  was  staying.  He  then 
moved  to  the  young  State  of  Arkansas,  where  a  promis- 
ing career  at  the  bar  was  cut  short  by  an  early  death 
from  congestive  fever,  less  than  a  year  after  his  mother's 
death. 

"In  the  summer  of  1832,  my  mother  parted  with  the 
orphan  granddaughter,  Ellen  Bankhead,  whom  she  had 
adopted,  and  who,  being  then  married  to  Mr.  John 
Carter,  of  Albemarle,  returned  to  live  on  his  estate  in 
his  native  mountains,  and  among  the  scenes  of  her  child- 
hood. Willie,  her  litde  orphan  brother,  was  about  that 
time  claimed  by  his  paternal  grandfather,  and  placed  at 
a  day-school  near  him.  In  the  following  spring,  Mr. 
Trist  purchased  a  house  into  which  we  all  moved.  I 
think  my  mother  felt  more  at  home  in  this  pleasant,  new 
abode  than  she  had  ever  done  since  leaving  Monticello. 
The  house  had  been  built  by  Mr.  Richard  Rush,  our 
-Minister  to  England  for  many  years,  and  when  we  first 
moved  to  Washington,  was  occupied  by  this  gentleman 
and  his  lovely  wife  and  family.  It  was  a  spacious  dwell- 
ing, admirably  planned  and  built,  with  a  large  garden 


MOTHER    AND    DAUGHTERS.  1 65 

and  out-buildings,  the  whole  enclosed  by  a  high  brick 
wall.  There  the  last  three  years  of  my  mother's  life 
were  spent,  although  her  death  took  place  suddenly  at 
Edgehill,  my  brother's  residence  in  Virginia. 

"  The  winter  preceding  had  been  marked  by  the 
death  of  my  brother,  James  Madison  Randolph,  who  had 
just  completed  his  27th  year.  He  was  buried  at  Mon- 
ticello  on  a  cold  day  in  January,  I  remember  the 
negroes  assembled  there,  and  made  a  fire  to  keep  them 
warm  while  they  waited  for  the  procession  which  fol- 
lowed him  to  his  early  grave,  who,  they  said,  was  the 
'black  man's  friend,'  and  would  have  shared  his  last  cent 
with  one  of  them.  At  the  time  of  our  removal  to  that 
pleasant  new  home,  my  brother-in-law,  Mr.  Joseph  Coo- 
lidge,  of  Boston,  having  gone  to  China,  was  engaged  in 
business  in  Canton;  his  family  remaining  in  Boston.  In 
the  summer  of  1834,  and  during  the  absence  of  her  hus- 
band, my  sister  paid  us  a  visit,  passing  the  summer  in 
Virginia  at  my  brother's,  and  the  following  winter  with 
us  in  Washington.  On  that  occasion,  my  mother  had 
all  her  daughters  with  her  for  the  last  time;  and  Lewis, 
yet  unmarried,  was  stili  living  with  her.  The  season 
was  remarkable  for  its  severity,  the  thermometer  falling 
so  low  as  1 6°  below  zero,  on  a  gallery  with  a  southern 
exposure  of  our  house,  and  so  late  even  as  the  ist  day 
of  March,  stood  at  zero — the  snow  a  foot  deep  in  the 
garden.  Soon  after  the  purchase  of  that  house,  Mr. 
Trist,  whose  health  had  been  very  delicate,  was  ap- 
pointed by  General  Jackson  to  be  United  States  Consul 


I  68  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

that  occasion  that  this  precious  portrait  was  secured 
by  my  prevaiHng  on  her  to  sit  to  Mr.  Sully,  then  consid- 
ered the  best  female  portrait  painter  in  our  country. 
Twenty  years  previously,  Mr.  Sully  had  passed  some 
time  as  a  guest  at  Monticello,  having  been  employed  to 
make  a  portrait  of  my  grandfather  for  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point,  Since  that  time  my  mother 
had  changed  very  much.  Mr.  Sully  had  then  found  her 
living  with  her  dear  father  in  that  happy  home,  sur- 
rounded by  a  large,  cheerful  family  circle  unbroken  by 
death.  But  in  the  long  interval,  many  of  its  members 
had  been  taken  away,  and  grief  had  left  its  traces  not 
less  plainly  stamped  upon  her  face  than  age.  She  was 
thinner  and  more  feeble  than  I  had  ever  seen  her — it 
was  just  six  months  before  her  death.  I  accompanied 
her  to  Mr.  Sully's  studio  for  her  first  sitting,  and  as  she 
took  her  seat  before  him  she  said  playfully:  'Mr.  Sully, I 
shall  iiever  forgive  you  if  you  paint  me  with  wrinkles.' 
I  quickly  interposed, — 'Paint  her  just  as  she  is,  if  you 
pi.ease,  Mr.  Sully:  the  picture  is  for  me.'  He  said,  'I 
shall  paint  you,  Mrs.  Randolph,  as  I  remember  you 
twenty  years  ago."  He  approved  of  her  dress,  particu- 
larly a  large  cape  worn  by  old  ladies,  and  requested  her 
not  to  make  any  change  in  it.  The  picture  does  rep- 
resent her  twenty  years  younger  than  when  she  sat 
to  him,  but  It  failed  to  restore  the  embonpoint,  and  es- 
pecially the  expression  of  health,  and  cheerful,  even 
joyous,  vivacity,  which  her  countenance  then  habitually 
wore.      While    she   was    sitting    for    her  portrait,    her 


CLOSING    SCENES.  I  69 

youngest  daughter,  Septimia,  arrived  by  sea  from  Pen- 
sacola,  where  she  had  been  taken  by  Mr.  Trist  to  pass 
the  winter  with  some  friends,  soon  after  which  my 
mother  pursued  her  journey  to  Virginia,  accompanied 
by  Mary  and  Septimia. 

"Mr.  Trist  returned  in  August,  and  I  set  out  with  him 
In  September  for  V^irginia  to  take  leave  of  my  friends. 
On  our  arrival  at  Washington,  finding  General  Jackson 
there  alone  in  the  White  House — soon  to  set  out  for 
Tennessee,  where  his  family  had  preceded  him — the 
General  expressed  a  wish  for  my  husband's  company 
durin<T  the  davs  he  ml^ht  still  be  detained  there.  This 
being  acceded  to,  I  pursued  my  journey  alone,  litdc 
dreaming  that  this  detention  of  a  few  days  was  to  de- 
[irive  my  husband  of  ever  again  seeing  my  mother,  be- 
tu'een  whom  and  himself  the  warmest  attachment  ex- 
isted. On  reaching  Edgehill,  I  found  them  all  assem- 
bled under  my  brother's  roof,  soon  to  travel  together 
northward  again  before  the  separation  so  dreaded  by  us 
all.  My  mother  and  Mary  were  to  pass  the  winter  with 
Mrs.  Coolidge,  In  Boston,  whilst  Cornelia  and  Septimia 
were  to  accompany  me  to  Havana.  I  found  my  mother 
still  looking  very  delicate  and  troubled  with  sore  throat, 
for  which  a  gargle  had  been  prescribed  by  my  brother, 
Dr.  Benjamin  F.  Randolph.  She  complained  of  a  ver- 
tigo when  she  threw  back  her  head  in  uslne  it.  The 
day  appointed  for  our  departure  being  close  at  hand, 
she  had  exerted  herself  more  than  usual  in  packing  a 
trunk  ;  the  following  day  she  had  a  sick-headache  and 


I  68  MARTHA    JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

that  occasion  that  this  precious  portrait  was  secured 
by  my  prevaiHng  on  her  to  sit  to  Mr.  Sully,  then  consid- 
ered the  best  female  portrait  painter  in  our  country. 
Twenty  years  previously,  Mr.  Sully  had  passed  some 
time  as  a  guest  at  Monticello,  having  been  employed  to 
make  a  portrait  of  my  grandfather  for  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point.  Since  that  time  my  mother 
had  changed  very  much.  Mr.  Sully  had  then  found  her 
living  with  her  dear  father  in  that  happy  home,  sur- 
rounded by  a  large,  cheerful  family  circle  unbroken  by 
death.  But  in  the  long  interval,  many  of  its  members 
had  been  taken  away,  and  grief  had  left  its  traces  not 
less  plainly  stamped  upon  her  face  than  age.  She  was 
thinner  and  more  feeble  than  I  had  ever  seen  her — it 
was  just  six  months  before  her  death.  I  accompanied 
her  to  Mr.  Sully's  studio  for  her  first  sitting,  and  as  she 
took  her  seat  before  him  she  said  playfully:  'Mr.  Sully, I 
shall  never  forgive  you  if  you  paint  me  with  wrinkles.' 
I  quickly  interposed, — 'Paint  her  just  as  she  is,  if  you 
pi.ease,  Mr.  Sully:  the  picture  is  for  me.'  He  said,  'I 
shall  paint  you,  Mrs.  Randolph,  as  I  remember  you 
twenty  years  ago."  He  approved  of  her  dress,  particu- 
larly a  large  cape  worn  by  old  ladies,  and  requested  her 
not  to  make  any  change  in  it.  The  picture  does  rep- 
resent her  twenty  years  younger  than  when  she  sat 
to  him,  but  it  failed  to  restore  the  embonpoint,  and  es- 
pecially the  expression  of  health,  and  cheerful,  even 
joyous,  vivacity,  which  her  countenance  then  habitually 
wore.      While    she   was    sitting    for    her  portrait,    her 


CLOSING    SCENES.  I  69 

youngest  daughter,  Septimia,  arrived  by  sea  from  Pen- 
sacola,  where  she  had  been  taken  by  Mr.  Trist  to  pass 
the  winter  with  some  friends,  soon  after  which  my 
mother  pursued  her  journey  to  Virginia,  accompanied 
by  Mary  and  Septimia. 

"Mr.  Trist  returned  in  August,  and  I  set  out  with  him 
in  September  for  Virginia  to  take  leave  of  my  friends. 
On  our  arrival  at  Washington,  finding  General  Jackson 
there  alone  in  the  White  House — soon  to  set  out  for 
Tennessee,  where  his  family  had  preceded  him — the 
General  expressed  a  wish  for  my  husband's  company 
durinor  the  davs  he  mi^ht  still  be  detained  there.  This 
being  acceded  to,  I  pursued  my  journey  alone,  litdc 
dreaming  that  this  detention  of  a  few  days  was  to  de- 
prive my  husband  of  ever  again  seeing  my  mother,  be- 
tween whom  and  himself  the  warmest  attachment  ex- 
isted. On  reaching  Edgehill,  I  found  them  all  assem- 
bled under  my  brother's  roof,  soon  to  travel  together 
northward  again  before  the  separation  so  dreaded  by  us 
all.  My  mother  and  Mary  w^ere  to  pass  the  winter  with 
Mrs.  Coolidge,  in  Boston,  whilst  Cornelia  and  Septimia 
were  to  accompany  me  to  Havana.  I  found  my  mother 
still  looking  very  delicate  and  troubled  w^ith  sore  throat, 
for  which  a  gargle  had  been  prescribed  by  my  brother. 
Dr.  Benjamin  F.  Randolph.  She  complained  of  a  ver- 
tigo when  she  threw  back  her  head  in  usine  it.  The 
day  appointed  for  our  departure  being  close  at  hand, 
she  had  exerted  herself  more  than  usual  in  packing  a 
trunk  ;  the  following  day  she  had  a  sick-headache  and 


170  MARTHA   JEFFERSON    RANDOLPH. 

kept  her  bed.  She  had  all  her  life  been  subject  to  these 
headaches,  but  within  the  last  few  years  had  ceased  to 
have  them.  One  of  my  sisters  expressed  the  hope  that 
their  recurrence  might  be  a  favorable  symptom,  a  proof 
of  returning  vigor,  as  she  had  not  had  anything  of  the 
sort  since  her  illness  eighteen  months  before  in  Wash- 
ington. We  watched  by  her  bedside,  though  feeling  no 
alarm  at  an  affection  which  we  had  always  been  accus- 
tomed to  see  her  suffer  with  for  several  days  at  a  time. 
One  of  my  sisters  slept  in  the  room  with  her,  and  before 
parting  with  her  for  the  night,  I  gave  my  mother  some 
arrow-root.  Early  next  morning  I  was  called  and  told 
she  was  worse.  I  hurried  to  her  bedside,  but  was  too 
late  to  be  recognized,  a  blue  shade  passed  over  the 
beloved  face  ;  it  was  gone  and  she  lay  as  in  sleep,  but 
life  had  gone  too.  It  was  apoplexy.  She  died  on  the 
loth  of  October,  1836,  having  just  completed  her  sixty- 
fourth  year  on  the  27th  of  September,  ten  years  and 
three  months  after  her  father,  and  was  laid  by  his  side  in 
the  graveyard  at  Monticello." 


£2^.&^f/Uyc^^7^. 


IV. 

DOROTHY  P.  MADISON. 

Washington  Irving,  in  one  of  his  letters,  has  given 
an  amusing  account  of  his  troubles  in  Washington,  in 
preparing  to  attend  a  levee  given  by  President  Madison. 
After  a  ludicrous  description  of  his  vexations,  he  says, 
he  finally  emerged  into  the  blazing  splendor  of  Mrs. 
Madison's  drawincr-room.  Here  he  was  most  ^ra- 
ciously  received,  and  found  a  crowded  collection  of  great 
and  little  men,  of  ugly  and  old  women,  and  beautiful 
young  ones.  Mrs.  Madison,  he  adds,  was  a  fine,  pretty 
buxom  dame,  who  had  a  smile  and  a  pleasant  word  fcv 
everybody.  Her  sisters,  Mrs.  Cutts  and  Mrs.  Washing- 
ton, were  also  present  on  this  occasion,  and  looked  "like 
the  merry  wives  of  Windsor." 

Dorothy  Payne,  the  second  child  of  John  and  Mary 
Coles  Payne,  was  born  the  20th  of  May,  1767.  Her 
mother  was  a  daughter  of  William  Coles,  Esq.,  of  Coles 
Hill ;  and  was  a  lady  of  pleasing  social  manners.  The 
family  were  Virginians,  and  though  Mrs.  Madison  was 
born  in  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  she  ever  prided 
herself  on  a  title  so  dear  to  all  its  possessors :  that  of 
beinof  a  daughter  of  the  old  commonwealth.  Her 
parents  removed  to  Philadelphia  when  she  was  quite 
young,  and  joined  the  Society  of  Friends  at  that  place. 
Here  their  little  daughter  was  reared  according  to  the 


172  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

Strict  system  of  the  society,  and  by  example  and  precept 
taught  to  ignore  all  those  graceful  accomplishments 
deemed  so  necessary  in  the  formation  of  a  woman's 
education.  Attired  in  the  close-fittino-  dress  of  her 
order,  she  would  demurely  attend  to  the  duties  imposed 
upon  her,  and  the  wonderful  undertone  of  sweetness  in 
her  character  kept  the  brow  serene,  and  the  heart  ever 
bright  and  hopeful.  Hers  was  a  suimy,  elastic  nature, 
even  as  a  child ;  and  if  she  was  not  permitted  to  learn 
the  worldly  arts  she  desired,  her  disposition  was  not 
soured  by  these  restrictions,  and  the  inner  graces  which 
afterward  made  her  famous,  blossomed  and  bloomed  in 
native  harmony.  Nothing  could  conceal  her  beautiful 
character.  Nor  could  the  quaint  bonnet  of  the  Friends 
bide  her  sparkling  eyes  and  perfectly  rounded  features 
from  the  admiring  gaze  of  her  young  acquaintances. 
At  the  age  of  nineteen  she  was  married  to  John  Todd,  a 
rising  young  lawyer  of  Philadelphia  and  a  member  of 
the  Society  of  Friends.  Her  father  had  manumitted  his 
slaves  when  he  moved  to  the  city,  and  Miss  Payne  was 
accustomed  to  a  life  of  simplicity *and  plentifulness,  but 
never  to  even  comparative  wealth.  Nor  was  she  re- 
markable for  her  literary  abilities  or  acquired  attain- 
ments ;  but  her  warm  heart  beamed  goodness  from  her 
expressive  lips  and  lent  a  fascination  to  her  frank, 
earnest  face.  After  her  union  with  Mr.  Todd,  her  time 
was  spent  in  her  modest  home  according  to  the  secluded 
manner  of  her  sect,  and  during  her  short  married  life 
she  pursued  the  even  tenor  of  her  quiet  way,  uncon- 


MARRIED    TO    MR.    MADISON.  173 

scicus  of  her  rapidly  unfolding  beauty,  or  of  die  admira- 
tion it  was  exciting-.  Soon  she  was  left  a  widow  with 
an  infant  son,  and  made  her  home  with  her  widowed 
mother. 

The  personal  charms  of  the  young  widow,  united  as 
they  were,  with  manners  cordial,  frank  and  gay,  excited 
the  admiration  and  awakened  the  kind  feelinofs  of  all 
who  came  within  their  influence,  and  unaided  by  the  ex- 
trinsic and  accidental  advantages  of  fortune  or  fashion, 
she  became  a  general  favorite,  and  the  object  not  only 
of  attention,  but  of  serious  and  devoted  attachment. 

In  October,  1794,  Mrs.  Todd  was  married  to  Mr. 
Madison,  then  one  of  the  most  talented  members  of  Con- 
gress, a  statesman  of  wealth  and  social  position,  and 
withal  a  great  and  good  man.  She  had  been  a  widow 
less  than  a  year,  and  was  at  the  time  of  her  second  mar- 
riage in  the  twenty-third  year  of  her  age.  The  ceremony 
was  performed  at  "Harewood,"  Jefferson  county,  Vir- 
ginia, the  residence  of  her  younger  sister,  Lucy,  the  wife 
of  George  Steptoe  Washington.  From  this  time  for- 
ward she  lived  at  "Montpelier,"  the  rural  home  of  Mr. 
Madison,  until  he  was  called  again  to  public  life.  It  was 
at  this  time  of  her  life  that  she  developed  the  loveliest 
traits  of  her  noble  character.  Placed  in  a  position  where 
she  could  command  resources,  the  warmth  and  gener- 
osity of  her  nature  were  displayed,  not  in  lavish  personal 
expenditures,  but  in  dispensing  the  bounties  bestowed 
upon  her  to  all  who  came  as  suppliants,  and  in  giving  to 
her  widowed  mother  and  orphaned  sisters  a  home.    The 


174  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

blessings  of  her  kindred,  and  the  fond  love  of  her  hus- 
band, gladdened  these,  the  first  years  of  her  married  life, 
and  her  relatives  and  friends  were  made  partakers  of 
her  abundance,  while  the  tender  attentions  of  Mr.  Madi- 
son to  her  aged  mother  filled  her  heart  to  repletion. 
Had  she  not  been  placed  in  a  position  harmonious  to 
her  nature,  it  is  probable  that  her  days  would  have  been 
spent  in  indifferent  adherence  to  a  dull  routine,  and  the 
rills  of  her  heart  which  bubbled  and  sang  so  gleefully  In 
the  summer  of  heir  content,  never  been  discovered  be- 
neath the  weight  of  circumstances.  Fortunately  hers 
was  a  disposition  to  rightfully  appreciate  the  gifts  of  for- 
tune and  social  consideration,  and  in  accepting  her 
bright  future  prospects,  she  determined  to  nourish  the 
smothered  generosity  of  her  soul.  Hitherto  her  lot  had 
been  circumscribed  and  the  charitable  desires  of  her 
heart  been  restrained ;  but  when  the  power  was  given 
her  to  do  good,  she  filled  the  measure  of  her  life  with  the 
benedictions  of  humanity,  and  reigned  In  the  affections 
of  her  friends  without  a  rival. 

Mr.  Jefferson  appointed  Mr.  Madison  Secretary  of 
State  In  iSoi,  and  in  April  of  that  year  he  removed  with 
his  family  to  Washington.  Here  her  position  was  in 
perfect  accordance  with  her  disposition,  and  her  house 
was  a  radiating  point  for  every  acquaintance.  The  great 
secret  of  her  success  lay  in  the  innocence  which  dwelt 
in  her  noble  nature ;  and  this  nobleness  of  Innocence 
underlaid  the  dignity  and  high-mlndedness  which  attested 
an  elevated  nature.     She  drank  the  wine  of  human  ex- 


LIFE    IN    WASHINGTON.  175 

istence  without  the  lees,  and  inhaled  the  perpetual 
breath  of  summer,  even  after  the  snows  of  winter  had 
clogged  the  dull  course  of  life.  She  was  gifted  with  that 
which  was  better  than  Ithuriel's  spear,  whose  touch  re- 
veals the  beauty  which  existed  in  everything,  for  she  was 
humble-hearted,  tolerant  and  sincere.  Entirely  free 
from  malignant  cavil,  her  instinctive  sympathy  with  the 
good  and  beautiful  led  her  to  seek  it  in  everything 
around  her,  and  her  life,  if  not  devoted  to  the  higher  cul- 
tivation of  the  mind,  developed  the  sunny  brightness  of 
her  heart. 

The  power  of  adaptiveness  was  a  live-giving  principle 
in  Mrs.  Madison's  nature.  With  a  desire  to  please,  and 
a  willingness  to  be  pleased,  she  was  popular  in  society, 
and  was  to  her  husband  a  support  and  friend.  Wash- 
ington was  little  more  than  a  wilderness,  when,  in  the 
spring,  she  commenced  life  there  as  the  wife  of  a  cabinet 
officer.  The  elements  which  combined  to  form  the  so- 
ciety of  the  Capital  were  various,  and  difficult  to  har- 
monize, and  her  situation  was  a  delicate  one  to  fill ;  yet 
she  was  loved  by  all  parties,  and  embittered  politicians 
who  never  met  save  at  her  hospitable  board,  there  for- 
got "  the  thorns  of  public  controversy  under  the  roses 
of  private  cheerfulness."  In  those  days  steamboats  were 
just  beginning,  railroads  unknown,  stage-coaches  ex- 
tremely inconvenient,  national,  indeed  even  turnpike 
roads  were  very  rare,  and  the  journeys  were  mostly  per- 
formed in  the  saddle.  The  daughter  of  one  of  the  sen- 
ators, who  wished  to  enjoy  the  gayeties  of  the  Capital, 


176  DOROTHY    P.  MADISON. 

accompanied  her  father  five  hundred  miles  on  horseback. 
The  wife  of  another  member  not  only  rode  fifteen  hun- 
dred miles  on  horseback,  but  passed  through  several  In- 
dian settlements,  sleeping  for  many  nights  in  a  tent  in 
the  woods.  Mrs.  Madison  herself  had  travelled  from  her 
Virginia  home  by  easy  stages,  cumbered  with  household 
furniture,  and  stopping  on  the  road  to  visit  relatives ;  oc- 
cupying what  seems  to  us  at  this  day  an  incredible 
length  of  time  to  perform  such  a  journey.  Her  house, 
after  the  President's,  was  the  resort  of  most  company, 
and  the  cordial  manners  of  the  hostess  lent  a  peculiar 
charm  to  the  frequent  parties  there  assembled. 

Political  feuds  ran  high,  and  party  spirit  was  more 
virulent  than  ever  before  experienced.  Washington's 
administration  had  been  a  success,  and  in  the  eyes  of  the 
public,  he  was  not  included  in  any  party,  but  was  above 
them  all.  Yet  he  placed  himself,  when  the  question  was 
of  a  political  order,  under  the  banner  of  the  federal 
party,  and  was  the  declared  advocate  of  the  unity  and 
force  of  the  central  power.  He  insured  its  triumph 
during  his  two  terms,  and  let  his  mantle  descend  upon 
one  of  his  most  attached  friends.  The  democratic 
party,  desiring  the  rule  of  the  majority,  opposed  to  the 
preponderance  of  the  higher  classes,  and  to  aristocratic 
tendencies,  overcame  the  successor  of  Washington,  who 
was  defeated  by  Mr,  Jefferson,  the  leader  of  the  opposi- 
tion. At  the  commencement  of  this  era,  Mrs.  Madison 
appeared  upon  the  scene,  and  gave  to  her  husband  that 
support  which  enhanced  his  popularity  as  a  public  man, 


HOSTESS    C>F     rilK    MANSION.  I  77 

and  made  his  house  the  most  attractive  place  of  resort 
in  the  city.  During  his  eight  years'  Hfe  as  Secretary  of 
State,  she  dispensed  with  no  niggard  hand  the  abundant 
wealth  she  rightly  prized,  and  the  poor  of  the  district 
loved  her  name  as  a  household  deity. 

In  1 80S,  Mr.  Madison  was  elected  President,  and  after 
Mr.  Jefferson  left  the  city,  he  removed  to  the  White 
House.  Under  the  former  administration,  Mrs.  Madison 
had,  during  the  absences  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  daughters, 
presided  at  the  receptions  and  levees,  and  was  in  every 
particular  fitted  to  adorn  her  position  as  hostess  of  the 
mansion  she  was  called  to  preside  over.  Every  one  ir 
Washington  felt  that  her  watchful  care  and  friendly  in 
terest  would  be  in  nowise  diminished  by  her  advance- 
ment to  a  higher  position  ;  and  the  magical  effects  of  her' 
snuff-box  were  as  potent  in  one  capacity  as  another. 
The  forms  and  ceremonials  which  had  rendered  the 
drawincr-rooms  of  Mrs.  Washinoton  and  Mrs.  Adams 
dull  and  tedious,  were  laid  aside,  and  no  kind  of  stiffness 
was  permitted.  Old  friends  were  not  forgotten,  nor  new 
ones  courted;  but  mild  and  genial  to  all,  each  person 
felt  himself  the  object  of  special  attention,  and  all  left 
her  presence  pleased  and  gratified  with  her  urbanity  and 
refinement. 

Possessing  a  most  retentive  memory,  she  never  mis- 
called a  name,  or  forgot  the  slightest  incident  connected 
with  the  personal  history  of  any  one  ;  and  therefore  im- 
pressed each  individual  with  the  idea  of  their  importance 
in  her  esteem.     Mrs.  Madison's  sole  aim  was  to  be  ,pop- 

12 


I  78  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

ular  and  render  her  husband's  administration  brilliant 
and  successful.  Her  field  was  the  parlor;  and  with  the 
view  of  reigning  supreme  there,  she  bent  the  energies 
of  her  mind  to  the  one  idea  of  accomplishment.  In  her 
thirty-seventh  year  she  entered  the  White  House.  Sdll 
youthful  in  appearance,  denied  the  cares  of  maternity, 
which  destroy  the  bloom  of  beauty  on  the  delicate  faces 
of  American  women,  she  assumed  her  agreeable  position 
with  no  encumbrances,  no  crosses,  in  perfect  health,  the 
possessor  of  great  beauty  of  feature  and  form,  and 
eminently  happy  in  the  sincere  regard  of  her  husband. 
Contentment  crowned  her  lot  with  happiness,  and  the 
first  four  years  of  her  life  there  must  have  been  one 
continued  pleasure. 

With  all  her  appreciation  of  admiration,  she  was  not 
extravagant;  her  house,  during  the  time  of  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son's term,  was  very  plainly  furnished,  and  in  no  way 
elegant.  Like  most  Yircfinians,  she  delicrhted  in  com- 
pany,  and  her  home  was  the  most  hospitable  abode  in 
W^ashington.  Her  table  was  her  pride;  and  the  multi- 
plicity of  dishes,  and  their  size,  was  a  subject  of  ridicule 
to  a  foreign  minister,  who  observed  "  that  it  was  more 
like  a  harvest-home  supper,  than  the  entertainment 
of  a  Secretary  of  State."  She  heard  of  this  and  similar 
remarks,  and  only  observed  with  a  smile,  "  that  she 
thought  abundance  was  preferable  to  elegance;  that 
circumstances  formed  customs,  and  customs  formed 
taste ;  and  as  the  profusion  so  repugnant  to  foreign  cus- 
toms arose  from  the  .happy  circumstance  of  the  super- 


A    PANIC    IN    WASHINGTON.  1 79 

abundance  and  prosperity  of  our  country,  she  did  not 
hesitate  to  sacrifice  the  dehcacy  of  European  taste  for 
the  less  elegant,  but  more  liberal  fashion  of  Virginia." 
But  this  time  of  prosperity  was  doomed,  and  war  insatiate 
was  already  treading  upon  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic. 
Mr.  Madison,  the  peace-loving,  humane  Executive,  was 
compelled  to  declare  war  with  Great  Britain  ;  and  after  a 
time  its  actual  presence  was  felt  at  the  National  Capital. 
June,  181 2,  is  memorable  as  the  second  appeal  of  the 
United  States  to  arms,  to  assert  once  more  the  rights  of 
its  freemen  ;  and  for  three  years  its  fierceness  was  felt 
from  Canada  to  New  Orleans,  and  over  the  blue  waters 
of  the  oceans  of  the  world. 

"Generous  British  sentiments  revolted  at  the  destruc- 
tion of  tlie  American  Capital :  which  might  not  have  been 
branded  with  universal  infamy  if  confined  to  navy  yards, 
warlike  implements,  vessels  of  war,  and  even  private 
rope-walks,  if  the  enormity  had  stopped  there.  But  no 
warfare  can  satisfy  its  abominable  lust  with  impunity  on 
libraries,  public  and  private,  halls  of  legislation,  resi- 
dences of  magistrates,  buildings  of  civil  government, 
objects  of  art,  seats  of  peace,  and  embodiments  of  ra- 
tional patriotic  pride.  The  day  before  the  fall  of  Wash- 
ington was  one  of  extreme  alarm:  the  Secretary  of  State 
wrote  to  the  President:  'The  enemy  are  advanced  six 
niiles  on  the  road  to  the  wood-yard,  and  our  troops  are 
retreating,  you  had  better  remove  the  records.'  Then 
commenced  the  panic  which  was  destined  to  grow  more 
general  the  coming  day.     Tuesday  night  every  clerk  was 


i8o  Dorothy  p.  madison, 

busy  packing  and  aiding  in  the  removal  of  valuables. 
Coarse  linen  bags  were  provided,  and  late  in  the  evening, 
after  all  the  work  was  over,  and  the  bags  were  hanging 
round  the  room,  ready  at  a  moment's  warning  to  be 
moved,  Mr.  Pleasanton,  one  of  the  clerks,  procured  con- 
veyances, and  crossing  the  Potomac,  deposited  them  in 
a  mill  three  miles  off.  But  fearing  for  their  safety,  he  de- 
termined to  go  farther  into  the  interior,  and  the  next 
night  slept  at  Leesburg,  a  small  town  thirty-five  miles 
from  Washington.  The  light  that  shone  against  the 
cloudless  sky  revealed  the  fate  of  the  city,  and  the  doom 
of  his  charge  had  they  delayed.  Amongst  the  documents 
were  the  original  Declaration  of  Independence,  the  Fed- 
eral Constitution,  and  General  Washington's  commission 
as  Commander-in-chief  of  the  Army  of  the  Revolution, 
which  he  relinquished  when  he  resigned  it  at  Annapolis 
(found  among  the  rubbish  of  a  garret).  Scarcely  had  the 
wagon  that  bore  the  papers  crossed  the  wooden  bridge  of 
the  Potomac,  than  crowds  of  flying  fugitives,  men,  women 
and  children,  pressed  upon  it  in  such  numbers  as  to  ren- 
der the  threatened  danofer  almost  imminent.  The  friijht- 
ened  multitude  swayed  to  and  fro,  seeking  means  of 
escape  till  night  closed  the  horrible  drama  ;  then  upon 
Capitol  Hill  appeared  the  red-coated  soldiery  of  the 
British  army.  The  sun  sank  beneath  the  golden  sheen 
of  fleecy  clouds  that  floated  sofdy  over  the  southern 
horizon,  but  the  ooino-  down  of  the  kino;-  of  dav  in  no- 
wise  relieved  the  atmosphere.  Dust  and  heat  were  in- 
tolerable, and  a  rumor  that  the  water  was  poisoned  ren- 


A    BLAZING    CAPITAL.  l8l 

dered  the  sufferincrs  of  die  weary  soldiers  painful  in  the 
extreme.  For  the  seventh  time  that  day  a  retreat  was 
commanded,  and  the  city  troops,  mortified  and  enraged, 
refused  to  obey.  Back  from  the  city  to  the  heights  of 
Georgetown  was  the  order;  but  how  could  they  leave 
their  families,  their  homes  and  property,  and  march  by 
those  they  were  sworn  to  protect !  Down  the  long, 
broad,  and  solitary  avenue,  past  the  President's  now  de- 
serted house,  through  Georgetown,  and  some  as  far  as 
Tenlytown,  the  disorganized,  demoralized  remnant  of  the 
army  strayed,  and  slept  on  the  ground,  lighted  up  by  the 
fiery  red  glare  from  the  burning  buildings  in  Washington, 
i\ll  night  they  lay  alarmed  and  distressed,  while  but  few 
»  ould  steal  a  moment's  repose.  The  bursting  shells  in 
tae  navy  yard  were  heard  for  miles,  and  each  boom  was 
Zi  knell  to  the  ao:onizin<':  hearts,  who  knew  not  where 
tneir  helpless  ones  were  in  this  hour  of  horrors.  When 
the  British  marched  slowly  into  the  wilderness  city,  by 
die  lurid  light  that  shot  up  from  the  blazing  capitol,  the 
|)opulation  had  dwindled  down  to  a  few  stragglers  and 
the  slaves  of  the  absent  residents.  The  houses,  scattered 
'>ver  a  large  space,  were  shut,  and  no  sign  of  life  was 
visible.  The  President  had  crossed  the  Potomac  early  in 
the  afternoon,  and  Mrs.  Madison  had  followed  in  another 
direction.  The  bayonets  of  the  British  guard  gleamed 
as  they  filed  down  the  avenue,  and  the  fulminations  from 
the  navy  yard  saluted  them  as  they  passed.  Nothing 
but  the  prayers  and  entreaties  of  the  ladies,  and  the  ex- 
postulations of  the  nearest  residents,  deterred  the  British 


1 82  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

General  Ross  from  blowing  up  the  Capitol ;  but  he  or- 
dered it  to  be  fired  at  every  point,  and  many  houses  near 
it  were  consumed.  A  house  hard  by,  owned  by  General 
Washington,  was  destroyed,  which,  in  justice  to  human 
nature  be  it  said,  the  General  regretted.  Not  so  the 
Admiral,  who  ordered  the  troops  to  fire  a  volley  in  the 
windows  of  the  Capitol,  and  then  entered  to  plunder.  I 
have,  indeed,  to  this  hour  (said  Mr.  Richard  Rush,  in 
1855),  the  vivid  impression  upon  my  eye  of  columns 
of  flame  and  smoke  ascendino-  throughout  the  nieht 
of  the  24th  of  August  from  the  Capitol,  President's 
house,  and  other  public  edifices,  as  the  whole  were  on 
fire,  some  burning  slowly,  others  with  bursts  of  flame  and 
sparks  mounting  high  up  in  the  dark  horizon.  This 
never  can  be  forgotten  by  me,  as  I  accompanied  out 
of  the  city,  on  that  memorable  night,  in  1814,  President 
Madison,  Mr.  Jones,  then  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  General 
Mason,  of  Anacostia  Island,  Mr.  Charles  Carroll,  of 
Bellevue,  and  Mr.  Tench  Ringgold.  If  at  intervals  the 
dismal  sight  was  lost  to  our  view,  we  got  it  again 
from  some  hill-top  or  eminence  where  we  paused  to  look 
at  it." 

It  was  among  the  stories  when  Congress  met  near 
the  ruins  three  weeks  afterward,  that  the  Admiral  in  a 
strain  of  coarse  levity,  mounting  the  Speaker's  chair, 
put  the  question,  "Shall  this  harbor  of  Yankee  democ- 
racy be  burned?"  and  when  the  mock  resolution  was 
declared  unanimous,  it  was  carried  into  effect  by  heap- 
ing combustibles  under  the  furniture.     The  temporary 


THE    CAPTURE    OF    THE    CITY.  183 

wooden  structure,  connecting  the  two  wings,  readily 
kindled.  Doors,  chairs,  the  Hbrary  and  its  contents,  in 
an  upper  room  of  the  Senate-wing,  everything  that 
would  take  fire,  soon  disappeared  in  sheets  of  flame, 
illuminatino;  and  consternating-  the  environs  for  thirty 
miles  around,  whence  the  conflagration  was  visible. 
Through  "the  eternal  Pennsylvania  Avenue,"  the  Ad- 
miral and  General  led  their  elated  troops,  where  but  a 
few  hours  before  the  flying,  scattered  Americans,  dis- 
mayed, ashamed,  and  disgusted,  had  wended  their  sor- 
rowing way.  The  Capitol  behind  them  was  wrapt  in 
its  windinof  robes  of  flame,  and  on  throufjh  the  darkness 
they  passed  to  that  other  house  of  the  nation. 

An  aged  lady  lived  in  the  nearest  residence  to  tljo 
Presidential  Mansion,  and  here  the  ruffianly  Cockburn 
and  the  quiet,  sad  General  Ross  halted  and  ordered 
supper,  which  they  ate  by  the  light  of  the  burning- 
buildings.  A  letter  written  by  Mrs.  Madison  to  her 
sister  at  Mount  Vernon,  gives  us  an  insight  into  her 
feeling's,  at  this  time  of  trial  and  dancrer. 

"  TUKSDAY,  August  2ld,  1S14. 

"Dear  Sister: — My  husband  left  me  yesterday  morn- 
ing to  join  General  Winder.  He  inquired  anxiously 
whether  I  had  courage  or  firmness  to  remain  in  the 
President's  House  until  his  return,  on  the  morrow  or 
succeeding  day,  and  on  my  assurance  that  I  had  no 
fear  but  for  him  and  the  success  of  our  army,  he  left 
me,  beseeching  me  to  take  care  of  -myself,  and  of  the 


184  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

Cabinet  papers,  public  and  private.  I  have  since  re- 
ceived two  dispatches  from  him  written  with  a  pencil; 
the  last  is  alarming,  because  he  desires  that  I  should 
be  ready  at  a  moment's  warning  to  enter  my  carnage 
and  leave  the  city;  that  the  enemy  seemed  stronger 
than  had  been  reported,  and  that  it  might  happen  that 
they  would  reach  the  city  with  intention  to  destroy  it. 
"^  *  *  I  am  accordingly  ready;  I  have  pressed  as 
many  Cabinet  papers  into  trunks  as  to  fill  one  carriage ; 
our  private  property  must  be  sacrificed,  as  it  is  impos- 
sible to  procure  wagons  for  its  transportation.  I  am 
determined  not  to  go  myself,  until  I  see  Mr.  JMadison 
safe  and  he  can  accompany  me — a.->  I  hear  of  much 
hostility  toward  him.  *  *  *  Disaffection  stalks 
around  us.  *  *  My  friends  and  acquaintances  are 
all  gone,  even  Colonel  C,  with  his  hundred  men,  who 
were  stationed  as  a  guard  in  this  enclosure.  *  * 
French  John  (a  faithful  domestic)  with  his  usual  activity 
and  resolution,  offers  to  spike  the  cannon  at  the  gate, 
and  lay  a  train  of  powder  which  would  blow  up  the 
British,  should  they  enter  the  house.  To  the  last  propo- 
'iition  I  positively  object,  without  being  able,  however,  to 
make  him  understand  why  all  advantages  in  war  may 
not  be  taken. 

"Wednesday  morning,  twelve  o'clock. — Since  sunrise 
I  have  been  turning  my  spy-glass  in  every  direction  and 
watching  with  unwearied  anxiety,  hoping  to  discover  the 
approach  of  my  dear  husband  and  his  friends;  but,  alas! 
I   can   descry  only,  groups  of  military  wandering  in   all 


THE    PORTRAIT   OF    WASHINGTON.  1 85 

directions,  as  if  there  was  a  lack  of  arms,  or  of  spirit, 
to  fiirlit  for  their  own  firesides! 

"Three  o'clock. — Will  you  believe  it,  my  sister?  we 
have  had  a  battle  or  skirmish  near  Bladensburg-,  and  I 
am  still  here  within  sound  of  the  cannon!  Mr.  Madison 
comes  not;  may  God  protect  him!  Two  messengers 
covered  with  dust  come  to  bid  me  fly;  but  I  wait  for 
him.  '='  *  *  At  this  late  hour  a  wagon  has  been 
procured;  I  have  had  it  filled  with  the  plate  and  most 
valuable  portable  articles  belonging  to  the  house; 
whether  it  will  reach  its  destination,  the  Bank  of  Mary- 
land, or  fall  into  the  hands  of  British  soldiery,  events 
must  determine.  Our  kind  friend,  Mr.  Carroll,  has 
come  to  hasten  my  departure,  and  Is  In  a  very  bad 
humor  with  me  because  I  insist  on  waitingr  until  the 
large  picture  of  General  Washington  is  secured,  and  it 
)*equlres  to  be  unscrewed  from  the  wall.  This  process 
was  found  too  tedious  for  these  perilous  moments;  I 
have  ordered  the  frame  to  be  broken  and  the  canvas 
taken  out;  it  is  done — and  the  precious  portrait  placed 
in  the  hands  of  two  gendemen  of  New  York  for  safe- 
keeping. And  now,  my  dear  sister,  I  must  leave  this 
house,  or  the  retreating  army  will  make  me  a  prisoner 
in  it,  by  filling  up  the  road  I  am  directed  to  take.  When 
I  shall  again  write  to  you,  or  where  I  shall  be  to-morrow. 
1  cannot  tell!" 

On  the  removal  of  the  seat  of  government  to  Wash- 
ington.   In    1800,    a     magnificent    portrait    of    General 


1 86  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

Washington,  painted  by  Stuart  partly,  and  completed 
by  Winstanley,  to  whom  President  John  Adams'  son-in- 
law.  Colonel  Smith,  stood  for  the  unfinished  limbs  and 
body,  hung  in  the  state  dining-room.  Colonel  Wash- 
ington Parke  Custis,  of  Arlington,  a  grandson  of  Mrs. 
Washington,  called  at  the  President's  to  save  this  pic- 
ture of  his  illustrious  grandfather,  in  whose  house  he 
was  reared.  Then,  as  now,  it  was  one  of  the  very  few 
ornaments  which  adorned  the  White  House,  and  at  the 
risk  of  capture  INIrs.  Madison  determined  to  save  it. 
The  servants  of  the  house  broke  with  an  axe  the  heavy 
gilt  frame  which  protected  the  inner  one  of  wood,  upon 
which  the  canvas  was  stretched,  and  removed,  uninjured, 
the  painting,  leaving  the  broken  fragments  screwed  to 
the  wall,  which  had  held  in  place  the  valued  relic. 
Mrs.  Madison  then  left  the  house,  and  the  portrait  was 
taken  by  Mr.  Baker  beyond  Georgetown  and  placed  in 
a  secure  position. 

Half  a  century  later,  when  the  White  House  was 
undergoing  a  renovation,  this  portrait  was  sent,  with 
many  others  subsequently  added  to  this  solitary  paint- 
ing, to  be  cleaned  and  the  frame  burnished.  The 
artist  found  on  examination  that  the  canvas  had  never 
been  cut,  since  the  rusted  tacks,  time-worn  frame,  and 
the  size  compared  with  the  original  picture,  was  the 
most  conclusive  evidence  that  Mrs.  Madison  did  not  cut 
it  out  with  a  carving-knife,  as  many  traditions  have 
industriously  circulated. 

The  frame  was  a  large  one,  hanging  high  on  the  wall, 


THE    ENEMY    IN    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  1 87 

and  it  was  impossible  that  a  lady  could  by  mounting  a 
table  be  enabled  to  reach  any  but  the  lower  portion ; 
then,  too,  in  that  moment  of  nervous  alarm,  the  constant 
noise  of  cannon  fillino-  each  heart  with  dread,  it  seems 
improbable  that  any  hand,  above  all  a  woman's,  could 
be  steady  enough  to  cut,  without  ruining  the  canvas. 

Again,  from  the  lips  of  a  descendant,  the  assurance  is 
given  that  Mrs.  Madison  repeatedly  asserted  that  she 
did  not  cut  it,  but  only  lingered  to  see  it  safely  removed 
before  she  stepped  into  her  waiting  carriage  and  was 
driven  rapidly  toward  Georgetown. 

First  to  the  residence  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
then  to  Belleview,  and  joined  by  the  family  of  Mr.  Jones 
and  Mr.  Carroll,  she  returned  to  town  insisting  that 
her  terrified  coachman  should  take  her  back  toward 
the  President's  house  to  look  for  Mr.  Madison,  whom 
she  unexpectedly  found  near  the  lower  bridge,  attended 
by  Mr.  Monroe  and  Mr.  Rush,  who  had  reached  the 
White  House  soon  after  she  left  it  and  stopped  for  re- 
freshments. 

It  has  been  related  that  the  British  found  a  sumptuous 
meal  smoking  on  the  table  when  they  reached  there 
after  dark,  and  that  they  enjoyed  the  iced  wines  and 
cold  ham.  amusing  themselves  with  the  coarse  assertion 
that  "Jemmy"  ran  from  his  bacon  "to  save  his  bacon," 
The  low  pun  found  ears  ready  to  credit  and  circulate  it. 
but  the  porter,  who  died  but  a  few  years  since,  has 
repeatedly  asserted  that  the  occupants  of  the  house  had 
been  in   such  constant  fright  that  but  little   had   been 


1 88  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

cooked,  and  no  regular  meal  partaken  of  that  day ;  that 
there  was  always  plenty  in  the  larder  for  any  emergency, 
and  a  wine-cellar  kept  well  stored,  but  that  after  the 
President's  party  had  eaten  on  their  arrival,  soon  after 
Mrs.  Madison's  departure,  and  given  the  remnants  of 
their  hasty  meal  to  the  tired,  jaded  soldiers  of  Col. 
Savol's  reeiment,  that  there  was  nothinor  left. 

Water  was  furnished  the  troops  in  buckets,  and  all 
the  wine  in  the  house  given  them.  John  Siousa,  the 
French  porter,  after  seeing  the  President  and  his  attend- 
ants off,  took  the  parrot  belonging  to  Mrs.  Madison  to 
the  residence  of  Col.  Tayloe,  and  then  returned  and 
fastened  the  house  securely  and  took  the  keys  with  him 
to  Philadelphia.  All  the  afternoon,  parties  of  straggling 
lioldiers,  on  their  way  to  Georgetown,  hung  about  the 
house  and  grounds,  and  vagrant  negroes  pilfered  in 
55pite  of  the  efforts  of  the  servants.  Many  articles  were 
taken  from  the  house  to  be  secured  and  returned  as 
some  were,  but  much  was  never  restored.  The  porter 
secreted   the    orold   and   silver   mounted    carbines   and 

o 

pistols  of  the  Algerian  minister,  which  are  now  in  the 
Patent  Office,  but  the  revolvers  belonging  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Treasury,  which  the  President  laid  on  a 
table,  were  stolen. 

Gloating  with  revenge,  at  the  escape  of  the  President 
and  his  wife,  "  whom  they  wanted  to  show  in  England," 
the  enemy  broke  open  the  doors  of  the  White  House, 
and  ransacked  it  from  cellar  to  garret,  finding  nothing 
of  value,  or  as  objects  of  curiosity,  save  a  small  parcel 


THK    TORCH    APPLIED.  1  Sq 

of  the  pencil  notes  received  from  her  husband  by  Mrs. 
Madison,  while  he  was  with  the  troops,  which  she  had 
rolled  up  together  and  put  in  a  table  drawer.  To  all 
the  rest  of  the  contents:  furniture,  wines,  provisions, 
groceries,  and  family  stores,  which  cost  Mr.  Madison 
twelve  thousand  dollars,  together  with  an  excellent 
library,  the  torch  was  applied.  Fire  was  procured  at  a 
small  beer  house  opposite  the  Treasury  to  light  the 
buildincrs  with,  and  while  the  commanders  were  eatingf 
their  evening  meal  at  the  house  of  Mrs.  Suter,  on  the 
corner,  the  common  soldiers,  toijether  with  the  ne<7roes 
a^nd  thieves  of  all  grades,  were  pillaging  the  rapidly 
burningr  buildings. 

The  White  House  was  not  so  large  or  complete  then 
3,s  now  ;  the  East  Room,  which  had  served  Mrs.  Adams 
for  a  drying  room,  was  unfurnished  and  unoccupied, 
und  the  front  vestibule  not  then  added,  which  so  greatly 
enhances  the  interior  of  the  present  mansion.  The 
House  was  plain,  unfinished,  and  totally  destitute  of 
ornament,  the  grounds  uninclosed,  and  materials  for 
building  purposes  lying  scattered  about  the  woods  which 
have  since  become  the  ornament  of  this  portion  of  the 
city.  Nothing  but  the  lateness  of  the  hour,  and  the 
storm  coming  on,  saved  the  War  Department.  The 
squadron  which  was  to  have  co-operated  with  them,  fail- 
ing to  come,  filled  the  officers  with  timorous  fear,  and 
they  determined  to  evacuate  the  city  the  next  day  unless 
it  should  arrive  in  the  meantime.  For  over  a  week  the 
unhappy  citizens  of  W^ashington  had  not  slept  or  pur- 


igO  DOROTHY    r.    MADISON. 

sued  the  avocations  of  daily  life.  Constant  rumors  and 
frights  had  unnerved  the  stoutest  hearts,  and  families 
fleeinor  from  a  foreign  foe  rendered  the  situation  of 
those  who  could  not  leave  more  distressing.  Every 
vehicle  had  been  pressed  into  service,  and  valuables 
scattered  over  the  country  for  safety.  The  city  con- 
tained about  e'lcrht  thousand  inhabitants,  livino-  at  preat 
distances,  of  whom  not  more  than  one-tenth  remained  in 
its  limits  to  see  the  entrance  and  exit  of  the  British 
army.  Over  the  Long  Bridge,  until  it  was  in  danger  of 
giving  way,  through  the  country  into  the  interior  of 
Maryland  and  beyond  the  Georgetown  limits,  the  flying, 
frightened  people  wandered,  not  caring  whither  or  how 
they  went,  so  that  they  escaped  from  their  remorseless 
foes.  It  was  a  whole  week,  said  the  aged  Mrs.  Suter 
(at  whose  house  the  intruders  demanded  supper),  of 
great  trouble,  no  one  sleeping  at  night  and  the  day 
spent  in  fright.  After  the  terrors  of  that  sad  week  and 
dreadful  day,  the  Capitol  and  other  buildings  blazing,  the 
ammunition  in  the  navy  yard  exploding,  a  rain  set  in  which 
in  intensity  and  duration  was  scarcely  ever  witnessed, 
and  which  continued  during  the  following  day.  A  British 
narrator  states,  "that  the  most  tremendous  hurricane 
ever  remembered  by  the  oldest  inhabitant  in  the  place 
came  on.  Of  the  prodigious  force  of  the  wind,  it  is  im- 
possible for  you  to  form  any  conception.  Roofs  of 
houses  were  torn  off  by  it,  and  whisked  into  the  air  like 
sheets  of  paper;  while  the  rain  which  accompanied  it 
resembled  the  rushing  of  a  mighty  cataract,  rather  than 


TERRIBLE    STORM.  IQI 

the  dropping  of  a  shower.  The  darkness  was  as  great 
as  if  the  sun  had  long  set  and  the  last  remains  of 
twilight  had  come  on,  occasionally  relieved  by  flashes 
of  vivid  liorhtnin^r  streaminor  througfh  it,  which  together 
with  the  noise  of  the  wind  and  the  thunder,  the  crash  of 
falling  buildings,  and  the  tearing  of  roofs  as  they  were 
stripped  from  the  walls,  produced  the  most  appalling 
effect  I  shall  probably  ever  witness.  This  lasted  for 
nearly  two  hours  without  intermission ;  during  whicli 
time  many  of  the  houses  spared  by  us  were  blown 
down,  and  thirty  of  our  men,  beside  several  of  the  in- 
habitants, buried  beneath  their  ruins.  Our  column  was 
as  completely  dispersed  as  if  it  had  received  a  total 
defeat;  some  of  the  men  flying  for  shelter  behind  walls 
and  buildings,  and  others  falling  flat  upon  the  ground  to 
prevent  themselves  from  being  carried  away  by  the 
tempest ;  nay,  such  was  the  violence  of  the  wind  that 
two  pieces  of  cannon  which  stood  upon  the  eminence, 
were  fairly  lifted  from  the  ground  and  borne  several 
yards  to  the  rear." 

This  second  storm,  which  was  most  terrifying  to  the 
British,  unaccustomed  as  they  were  to  the  grand  forests 
and  heavy  rains  of  America,  was,  if  possible,  more  de- 
structive than  the  one  of  the  night  before.  It  com- 
menced about  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  was  so 
awful  to  the  troops  that  they  neglected  to  fire  the  post- 
office,  and  Congress  was  thereby  saved  the  necessity  of 
being  driven  to  Georgetown  or  Philadelphia,  when  it 
again  met  in    three   weeks.      After   an    occupation    of 


192  DOROTHY    l\    MADISON. 

twenty-nine  hours,  the  British  withdrew  and  Washington 
was  evacuated. 

Mrs.  Madison,  after  meeting  her  husband,  accom- 
panied him  to  the  banks  of  the  Potomac,  where  one 
small  boat  was  kept  ready — of  the  many  others  all  sunk 
or  removed  but  that  one — to  transport  the  President, 
Mr.  Monroe,  Mr.  Rush,  Mr.  Mason,  and  Mr.  Carroll  to 
the  Virginia  shore.  The  boat  was  too  small  to  carry  all 
at  once,  so  that  several  trips  were  necessary  ;  and  as 
the  shades  of  night  set  in  upon  them,  they  looked  like 
departing  spirits  leaving  the  world  behind,  to  be  ferried 
over  an  inevitable  Styx.  Bidding  them  adieu  as  the 
last  one  entered  the  frail  bark,  Mrs.  Madison  returned 
to  her  friends  at  Georgetown,  but  agreeably  to  her  hus- 
band's orders,  she  started  on  to  a  more  secure  retreat. 
The  roads  were  so  blocked  with  w^aeons  that  their 
progress  was  very  slow,  and  they  left  their  carriages  and 
walked  to  relieve  their  anxiety.  Crowds  of  soldiers, 
panic-stricken,  were  retracing  their  steps  to  the  remnant 
of  troops  with  General  Winder.  Families,  with  their 
conveyances  loaded  down  with  houseliold  goods,  moved 
slowly  forward,  amid  the  tumult,  while  the  coming  dark- 
ness increased  the  general  alarm.  Long  after  dark,  the 
party  accompanying  Mrs.  Madison  reached  the  resi- 
dence of  Mr.  Love,  on  the  Virginia  side  of  the  Potomac, 
where  they  begged  the  privilege  of  remaining  all  night. 
There  was  little  need  of  beds  for  that  agitated  band  of 
frightened  women,  and  the  night  was  passed  by  some  in 
tears  ;   by  Mrs.  Madison  in-  sitting  by  an  open  window, 


FLIGHT    INTO    VIIIGIXIA.  1 93 

gazing-  back  upon  the  weird  and  fantastic  flames  as  they 
met  and  lapped  in  the  far  distance. 

Smothered  rumbhng  noises  started  the  Hstcning  ear, 
as  ever  and  anon  some  huofe  edifice  or  wino-  of  a  build- 
ing  fell.  The  head  of  the  house  was  away  with  the 
troops,  and  his  wife  was  ill  and  alone  with  her  servants, 
but  the  sudden  visit  of  so  many  strangers  was  no  check 
to  the  hospitality  of  the  hostess.  Every  sofa  and  avail- 
able substitute  was  brought  into  requisition,  and  all  ren^ 
dered  comfortable.  Sleep  was  banished  from  all  eyes, 
even  had  any  been  inclined  to  repose.  The  clanking, 
clattering  noise  of  several  hundred  disorderly  cavalry- 
men around  the  house  kept  every  one  awake,  while  all 
felt  the  desolate  weariness  of  the  night  to  be  but  a  har- 
binger of  the  coming"  day.  "What  must  have  been  the; 
feelings  of  the  occupants  of  that  house  that  summer 
night  we  of  the  present  day  cannot  realize,"  writes  an 
eminent  historian  in  1842  ;  but  those  who  had  not  "fallen 
asleep"  when  the  summer  of  1862  came  upon  us,  en- 
dured similar  hours  of  anguish,  which  seared  their  hearts 
forever.  No  scene  of  horror  was  enacted  in  or  about 
Washineton  in  that  week  of  excitement  that  was  not 
repeatedly  paralleled  in  the  sad  years  of  our  civil  war. 

Long  before  day,  the  sleepless  caravan,  with  Mrs. 
Madison  at  the  head,  started  forward  to  the  place  ap- 
pointed for  a  meeting  with  Mr.  Madison.  Consterna- 
tion was  at  its  uttermost :  the  whole  region  filled  with 
frightened  people,  terrified  scouts  roaming  about  and 
spreading  alarm  that  the  enemy  were  coming  from 
13 


194  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

Washington  and  Alexandria,  and  diat  there  was  safety 
nowhere.  As  the  day  wore  on.  in  which  the  British 
were  plundering  and  burning  Washington,  the  storm 
that  sent  terror  to  their  superstitious  bosoms  overtook 
the  tired  refugees.  But  the  elemental  war,  with  its 
bolts  of  thunder  and  zigzag  lightning  penetrating  the 
darkened  recesses  of  the  forest,  caused  no  feeling  so 
insupportable  as  the  flying  rumor  that  the  negroes  were 
in  revolt,  and  maddened  with  drink  and  promised  lib- 
erty, were  roaming  in  numbers,  committing  every  ex- 
cess, worse  than  those  at  Hampton  the  year  before. 
As  the  day  gradually  drew  to  a  close,  the  faint  and 
drenched  companions  of  Mrs.  Madison  reached  the 
appointed  place,  sixteen  miles  from  Washington.  But 
the  President  was  not  there,  and  here  occurred  one  of 
those  disagreeable  scenes  that  are  a  disgrace  to  the 
name  of  humanity,  and  which,  be  it  said  to  the  shame  of 
her  sex,  are  oftener  the  acts  of  woman  than  of  man. 
Crowds  of  persons  from  Washington  occupied  the  tav- 
ern, and  the  women  declared  that  the  wife  of  him  who 
had  brought  war  upon  the  country,  should  not  find 
shelter  with  them,  its  innocent  victims.  Jaded  and  ex- 
hausted from  constant  travel  and  want  of  sleep,  the 
devoted  band  about  Mrs.  Madison  waited  in  the  rain, 
urging  the  tavern-keeper  to  give  them  an  apartment 
until  the  President  should  arrive.  The  furious  storm 
grew  louder,  the  sky,  lowering  before,  was  black  as 
night  now,  and  a  tornado  of  tropical  fury  set  in  which 
spread   desolation    for   many   miles   around.      Women 


INGRATITUDE    OF   THE    WOMEN.  1 95 

who  had  repeatedly  enjoyed  the  hospitalities  of  the 
White  House,  been  admitted  with  kind  cordiality  to 
drawinor-rooms  and  dinin^fs,  now  vied  with  the  wife  of 
the  landlord  in  denouncing  vehemently  the  inclination 
of  the  men  present  to  admit  the  Presidential  party. 
Embittered  by  their  real  and  imaginary  wrongs,  they 
lost  all  sense  of  honor  and  refinement,  and  stood  in 
their  true  colors  before  the  lady  who  never  for  one 
moment  forgot  the  dignity  becoming  her  station.  She 
preferred  exposure  to  the  storm  to  contention  ;  but  the 
escort  with  her,  indignant  at  the  contemptible  conduct 
of  the  rude  persons  within,  obliged  the  ungracious  occu- 
pants to  open  the  doors.  The  ojd  tavern  stood  in  the 
midst  of  an  apple  orchard  laden  with  ripening  fruit,  and 
hardly  had  the  travellers  left  their  carriages  when  the  hur- 
ricane dashed  the  apples,  in  several  instances  the  entire 
trees,  with  fearful  strength  against  the  house.  Mrs.  Mad- 
ison spread  the  lunch  she  had  prepared  the  day  before  at 
the  White  House,  and  in  silence,  interrupted  only  by  her 
inquiries  for  the  welfare  of  her  attendants,  they  ate  their 
damp  food  and  smothered  the  intense  disgust  they  felt 
for  families  who  only  the  day  before  they  deemed  firm 
friends.  The  hours  dragged  slowly  on,  and  the  anxious 
wife  looked  in  vain  for  her  absent  husband.  Did  she,  in 
that  hour  of  crrief  and  humiliation,  think  of  her  illustrious 
predecessors  who  had  endured  like  her  the  black  in- 
gratitude of  the  women  of  her  country?  Had  she  for- 
gotten that  the  ladies  of  Philadelphia,  in  1776,  refused 
Mrs.   Washington    similar  attention,   and    treated   with 


196  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

scorn  the  wife  of  the  Commander-in-chief,  who  was  usincr 
every  human  endeavor  to  organize  and  establish  a  con- 
tinental army  ?  Or  did  it  recur  to  her  that  a  time  would 
come  when,  like  Mrs.  Washington,  she  would  again, 
through  the  brightening  prospects  of  peace,  receive  the 
flattering  adulation  of  those  very  persons,  and  the  respect 
and  admiration  of  the  more  cultivated  throughout  the 
land  ?  Did  she  think  of  that  strong,  resolute  "  Portia  " 
of  the  Revolution  who,  in  her  modest  home  near  the  sea, 
denied  and  scorned  the  report  that  her  husband  had 
deserted  to  the  British,  yet  who  patiently  submitted  to 
the  averted  looks,  and  silent  reproaches  of  those  whom 
she  thought  her  friends,  and  waited  for  the  storm  to  blow 
over,  and  truth  once  more  to  triumph?  Philadelphia 
was  a  orreat  distance  then  from  the  coast  of  Massachu- 
setts,  and  mails  were  brought  only  at  rare  intervals,  but 
with  her  strong  faith  she  trusted  in  her  husband's  honor 
and  felt  that  it  was  not  betrayed.  Time  corrected  the 
false  rumor,  but  her  heart  had  been  deeply  wounded, 
and  it  never  forgot,  if  it  forgave,  the  conduct  of  many 
who,  in  her  hour  of  trial,  turned  against  her. 

Nervous  and  impatient,  Mrs.  Madison  waited  in  her 
inhospitable  quarters  for  the  President's  coming  ;  and  as 
night  came  on,  her  mind  was  relieved  by  seeing  him 
approaching,  accompanied  by  the  friends  with  whom  she 
left  him  the  night  before.  He  was  careworn  and  hungry, 
and  after  devouring  the  remnants  of  her  scanty  meal, 
sought  the  repose  he  so  needed.  "  That  uneasy  and 
humiliating  repose,  not  the  last  of  Mr.  Madison's  degra- 


MRS.    MADISON    IN    DISGUISE.  1 97 

dations,  was,  however,  the  turning  point  of  his  fortunes; 
for  while  he  slept,  Ross  hastily  and  clandestinely  evacu- 
ated Washington,  victor  and  vanquished  alike  victims  of, 
and  fugitives  from,  imagined  perils."  But  the  terrified 
citizens  knew  not  that  the  British  were  impotent,  and 
dismayed  at  the  non-appearance  of  their  fleet.  Every 
crash  of  thunder  was  to  them  a  source  of  alarm,  and  its 
rumblinofs  in  the  distant  clouds  the  imagined  noise  of 
approaching  troops.  Toward  midnight,  a  courier,  breath- 
less from  fatiofue  and  excitement,  warned  the  President 
that  the  enemy  were  coming,  and  he  was  compelled  to 
pass  the  rest  of  that  miserable  ^ight  In  a  hovel  in  the 
distant  woods,  with  the  boucrhs  sobbing  and  siorhinof  their 
requiem  around  him,  and  the  last  efforts  of  the  storm 
expending  itself  in  moans,  while  the  wind  swept  through 
the  tall  trees.  The  atmosphere  was  cooled  by  the  great 
and  prolonged  storm,  but  all  nature  seemed  to  weep 
from  exhaustion,  and  the  stillness  of  the  closing  hours  of 
the  ni<Tht  were  in  marked  contrast  to  the  roar  and  din  of 
the  preceding  twenty- four  hours. 

Mrs.  Madison  was  warned  by  her  husband  to  use  a 
disguise,  and  leaving  her  carriage  and  companions,  pro- 
cure another  conyeyance  and  fly  farther.  Attended  by 
a  nephew  of  Judge  Duvall,  she  set  out  accompanied  by 
one  soldier,  and  at  the  dawn  of  day  left  the  inhospitable 
inn  where  the  most  unhappy  night  of  her  life  had  been 
passed.  Her  carnage  and  four  horses  were  left  with  her 
friends,  and  a  substitute  obtained  from  a  gentleman  of 
Georgetown.    Soon  tidings  reached  her  that  Washington 


198  DOKOTIIV    P.    MADISON. 

was  evacuated,  and  retracing  her  steps,  she  reached,  after 
a  weary  ride,  the  Long  Bridge,  which  had  been  burned 
at  both  ends.  Here  the  officer  in  charge  positively  re- 
fused to  let  an  unknown  woman  cross  in  a  carriage  in 
his  only  remaining  boat.  No  alternative  was  left  her 
but  to  send  for  him  and  explain  who  she  was,  when  she 
was  driven  in  her  carriage  upon  the  dangerous  little  raft, 
which  bore  her  nearer  home.  Reaching  Washington,  so 
disguised  that  no  one  knew  her,  in  a  strange  carriage, 
she  found  her  former  home  in  ruins,  and  the  noblest 
buildings  reduced  to  blackened  heaps  of  smoking  timber. 
Desolation  met  her  op  every  side,  and  the  deserted 
streets  were  as  quiet  as  the  depths  of  the  forest  through 
which  she  had  passed.  Fortunately  her  sister,  Mrs. 
Cutts,  lived  in  the  city,  and  she  repaired  there  to  await  Mr. 
Madison's  return.  "The  memory  of  the  burning  of  Wash- 
ington," says  another,  "  cannot  be  obliterated.  The  sub- 
ject Is  Inseparable  from  the  great  international  principles 
and  usages.  It  never  can  be  thought  of  by  an  American, 
and  ought  not  to  be  thought  of  by  an  enlightened  English- 
man, but  in  conjunction  with  the  deplorable  and  reprehen- 
sible scenes  it  recalls.  It  was  no  trophy  of  war  for  a 
great  nation.  History  cannot  so  record  it.  Our  infant 
metropolis  at  that  time  had  the  aspect  of  merely  a  strag- 
gling village,  but  for  the  size  and  beauty  of  its  public 
buildings.  Its  scattered  population  scarcely  numbered 
eight  thousand;  it  had  no  fortresses  or  sign  of  any;  not 
a  cannon  was  mounted." 

Late  in  the  morninq-,  news  reached  the  President  at  his 


A   BRILLIANT    LEVEE.  1 99 

hiding-place  in  the  hovel,  that  the  enemy  were  retreating 
to  their  shipping — and  he,  too,  turned  his  steps  toward 
the  capital,  and  found  his  wife  before  him.  He  rented 
the  house  called  the  Octagon,  owned  by  Colonel  Tayloe, 
where  his  family  passed  the  winter,  and  where  he  signed' 
the  treaty  of  peace. 

It  was  situated  on  the  northeast  corner  of  New  York 
Avenue  and  Eighteenth  street.  He  afterward  removed 
to  the  northwest  corner  of  Pennsylvania  Avenue  and 
Nineteenth  street,  where  he  resided  until  the  President's 
House  was  repaired.  This  house  had  been  previously 
occupied  by  the  Treasury  Department.  On  F  street,  in 
a  house  between  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  streets,  now 
numbered  246,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Madison  lived  when  he 
was  Secretary  of  State.  All  three  of  these  residences 
still  remain. 

At  the  last  New  Year's  Reception  held  by  President 
Madison,  he  was  dressed  in  a  full  suit  of  cloth  of  Ameri- 
can manufacture,  made  of  the  wool  of  merinoes  raised  in 
the  United  States. 

"An  old  citizen  has  informed  me,"  says  Mr,  Gobright, 
in  his  "Men  and  Things  at  Washington,"  "that  the  levee 
of  Mr,  Madison,  in  February,  18 16,  was  remembered  for 
years  as  the  most  brilliant  ever  held  up  to  that  date  in 
the  Executive  Mansion.  The  Justices  of  the  Supreme 
Court  were  present  in  their  gowns,  at  the  head  of  whom 
was  Chief-Justice  Marshall,  The  Peace  Commissioners 
to  Ghent — Gallatin,  Bayard,  Clay  and  Russell — were  in 
the  company.    Mr.  Adams  alone  was  absent.    The  levee 


200  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

was  additionally  brilliant — the  heroes  of  the  war  of  1812, 
Major-Generals  Brown,  Gaines,  Scott  and  Ripley,  with 
their  aides,  all  in  full  dress,  forming  an  attractive  feature. 
The  return  of  peace  had  restored  the  kindest  feeling  at 
home  and  abroad.  The  Federalists  and  Democrats  of 
both  Houses  of  Congress,  party  politicians,  citizens  and 
strangers  were  brought  together  as  friends,  to  be  thankful 
for  the  present,  and  to  look  forward  with  delight  to  the 
ofreat  future.  The  most  notable  feature  of  the  evenino- 
was  the  magnificent  display  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps, 
prominent  in  which  was  Sir  Charles  Bagot,  special  am- 
bassador from  our  late  enemy,  Great  Britain.  It  was  on 
this  occasion  that  Mr.  Bagot  made  the  remark,  that  Mrs. 
Madison  'looked  every  inch  a  queen.'  The  only  in- 
cident of  a  disagreeable  character  was  the  coolness 
toward  the  French  minister  (who  was  very  popular  with 
the  Republicans)  by  the  Representatives  of  the  Holy 
Alliance.  Mrs.  Madison,  like  Mr.  Clay,  was  very  fond 
of  snuff.  The  lady  offered  him  a  pinch  from  her  splendid 
box,  which  the  gentleman  accepted  with  the  grace  for 
which  he  was  distinguished.  Mrs.  Madison  put  her  hand 
into  her  pocket,  and  pulling  out  a  bandanna  handkerchief, 
said,  '  Mr.  Clay,  this  is  for  rough  work,'  at  the  same  time 
applying  it  at  the  proper  place  ;  'and  this,'  producing  a 
fine  lace  handkerchief  from  another  pocket,  '  is  my  pol- 
isher.' She  suited  the  actions  to  the  words,  removing 
from  her  nose  the  remainintr  grains  of  snuff," 

Mrs.  Madison  at  this  time  was  represented  as  being 
a  very  gay  lady,  with  much  rouge  on  her  cheeks,  and 


TWO    VISITORS    FROM    THE    WEST.  20I 

always  appearing^  in  a  turban.  She  was  fond  of  bright 
colors  and  the  elegances  of  the  toilet;  yet  she  generally 
wore  inexpensive  clothing,  preserving  always  the  neat- 
ness of  a  Quaker,  with  the  elegance  of  a  lady  of  taste. 

Two  plain  ladies  from  the  West,  passing  through 
Washington,  determined  to  see  Mrs.  Madison;  but  as 
they  reached  there  late  at  night,  and  were  to  leave  early 
next  day,  they  were  much  puzzled  to  know  how  the  feat 
should  be  performed.  Meeting  in  the  street  an  old  gen- 
tleman next  morning,  they  timidly  approached  and  asked 
him  to  show  them  the  way  to  the  President's  House. 
Being  an  old  acquaintance  of  Mrs.  Madison,  he  took 
pleasure  in  conducting  the  strangers  to  the  White  House, 
The  President's  family  were  at  breakfast  when  the 
party  arrived,  but  Mrs.  Madison  good-naturedly  went 
in  to  be  seen  by  the  curious  old  ladies,  who  were  evi- 
dently much  astonished  to  find  so  august  a  personage 
in  a  plain  dark  dress,  with  a  linen  handkerchief  pinned 
about  her  neck.  Her  friendly  welcome  soon  put  them 
at  ease,  and  rising  to  leave,  after  a  visit  never  to  be  for- 
gotten, one  of  them  said,  "P'rhaps  )'ou  wouldn't  mind  if 
I  jest  kissed  you,  to  tell  my  gals  about."  Mrs.  Madison, 
not  to  be  outdone  by  her  .guest's  politeness,  gracefully 
saluted  each  of  the  delighted  old  ladies,  who  adjusted 
their  spectacles,  and,  with  evident  admiration,  departed. 

Mr.  Madison  was  a  silent,  grave  man,  whose  nature 
was  relieved  by  a  vein  of  quiet  good-humor,  which  in  his 
moments  of  relaxation  gave  an  inexpressible  charm  to 
his  presence.     A  statesman  of  vast  mind  and  research, 


202  DOROTHY    P.   MADISON. 

he  could  not  always  descend  to  the  graceful  little  ac- 
complishments which  were  so  attractive  to  many  ladies, 
and  hence  he  was  not  so  universally  admired  by  the 
fair  sex  as  his  charming  wife  was  by  the  gentlemen;  but 
nothing  gave  him  more  pleasant  satisfaction  than  to  feel 
that  Mrs.  Madison  could  do  credit  to  both  in  the  draw- 
ing-room, and  he  was  willing  to  be  banished  to  his 
cabinet. 

When  Mr.  Madison  was  attending  Congress  in  1783, 
he  became  attached  to  an  interesting  and  accomplished 
young  lady,  daughter  of  an  old  friend  of  Mr.  Jefferson, 
who  was  a  co-signer  with  him  of  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence.* This  attachment,  which  promised  at  one 
time  the  most  auspicious  result,  terminated  at  last  ir, 
disappointment.  The  following  extract  of  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  him  on  the  occasion  by  Mr.  Jefferson,  is 
given  because  of  its  connection  with  an  event  which  is 
never  without  importance  in  the  life  of  a  man  of  virtu- 
ous sensibilities,  and  as  affording  a  touching  proof  of 
the  intimate  and  fraternal  sympathies  which  united  the 
two  friends. 

"I  sincerely  lament,"  he  said,  "the  misadventure  which 
has  happened,  from  whatever  cause  it  may  have  hap- 
pened. Should  it  be  final,  however,  the  world  still  pre- 
sents the  same  and  many  other  sources  of  happiness, 
and  you  possess  many  within  yourself  Firmness  of 
mind  and  unintermitting  occupation  will  not  long  leave 
you  in  pain.     No  event  has  been  more  contrary  to  my 

*  General  William  Floyd,  one  of  the  delegates  of  New  York. 


A   CURIOUS   COINCIDENCE.  203 

expectations,  and  these  were  founded  on  what  i  thought 
a  good  knowledge  of  the  ground.  But  of  all  machines, 
ours  is  the  most  complicated  and  inexplicable." 

A  curious  coincidence  connected  with  three  of  the 
four  first  Presidents  is,  that  they  married  widows,  and 
each  had  been  at  a  previous  time  seriously  interested 
in  other  ladies.  It  is  also  remarkable  that  neither 
Washington,  Jefferson,  Madison,  or  his  successor,  had 
sons,  and  two  of  them  were  childless. 

Mrs.  Madison  was  not  a  learned  woman,  but  de- 
cidedly a  talented  one,  and  her  name  will  ever  be  a  syn- 
onym for  all  that  is  charming  and  agreeable. 

A  warm  admirer  of  hers  was  convincinof  a  friend  that 
she  was  not  vain.  "But,"  said  the  other,  "you  tell  mr^ 
she  used  rouge  and  powder."  "Yes,  yes,  she  did,"  he  re- 
plied, "but  it  was  to  please  and  gratify  those  who  were 
thrown  with  her,  not  because  she  was  fond  of  admira- 
tion." 

Mrs.  Trist,  the  daughter  of  Mrs.  Randolph,  in  reply 
to  my  request  for  her  description  of  Mrs.  Madison,  sent 
me  the  followincr: 

"  My  recollections  of  Mrs.  Madison  are  of  the  most 
acfreeable  nature,  and  were  formed  from  a  loner,  intimate 
acquaintance  beginning  in  my  childhood,  and  ending 
only  with  her  life.  She  had  a  sweet,  natural  dignity  of 
manner  which  attracted  while  it  commanded  respect ;  a 
proper  degree  of  reserve  without  stiffness  in  company 
with  strangers  ;  and  a  stamp  of  frankness  and  sincerity 
which,  with   her   intimate   friends,   became   gayety   and 


204  DOROTHY    T.  MADISON. 

even  playfulness  of  manner.  There  was,  too,  a  cordial, 
genial,  sunny  atmosphere  surrounding  her,  which  won 
all  hearts — I  think  one  of  the  secrets  of  her  immense 
popularity.  She  was  said  to  be,  during  Mr.  Madison's 
administration,  the  most  popular  person  in  tlie  United 
States,  and  she  certainly  had  a  remarkable  memory  for 
names  and  faces.  No  person  introduced  to  INIrs.  Mad- 
ison at  one  of  the  crowded  levees  at  the  White  House 
required  a  second  introduction  on  meeting  her  again, 
but  had  the  gratification  of  beino-  recoirnized  and  ad- 
dressed  by  his  or  her  own  name.  Her  son,  Payne  Todd, 
was  a  notoriously  bad  character.  His  misconduct  was 
the  sorrow  of  his  mother's  life.  Mr.  Madison,  during 
his  lifetime,  bore  with  him  like  a  fadier,  and  paid  many 
of  his  debts,  but  he  was  an  incorrigible  spendthrift.  His 
heartless,  unprincipled  conduct  embittered  the  last  years 
of  his  mother's  life,  and  no  doubt  shortened  it." 

An  anecdote  is  related  of  Mrs.  Madison,  in  connec- 
tion with  Mrs.  Merry,  wife  of  the  British  Minister,  and 
Thomas  Moore,  the  poet.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Merry  were  In- 
vited to  dine  with  President  Jefferson  ;  when  dinner  was 
announced,  Mrs.  Madison  happened  to  be  standing  and 
talking  to  the  President,  at  some  distance  from  Mrs. 
Merry,  and  he  offered  his  arm  to  her  and  conducted  her 
to  the  table,  where  she  always  presided  when  no  mem- 
bers of  his  family  were  present.  This  attention  to  the 
wife  of  the  Secretary  of  State  was  considered  by  Mrs. 
Merry  as  an  insult.  "  Such  a  stir  was  made  by  the  angry 
ambassador,  that  Mr.  Madison  wrote  to  Mr.  Monroe  (who 


Diri.O.MATIC    ETKjlElTE.  205 

had  succeeded  Mr.  King  as  our  Minister  to  England), 
apprising  him  of  the  facts,  to  enable  him  to  answer  an 
expected  call  of  the  British  Government  for  official  ex- 
planations. Mr.  Monroe,  however,  got  his  first  informa- 
tion from  a  friendly  British  under-secretary,  who  inti- 
mated tliat  he  would  soon  probably  hear  of  the  matter 
through  a  different  channel.  The  Minister  was  delighted. 
Within  a  very  short  period,  the  wife  of  an  English  under- 
secretary had  been  accorded  precedence  over  his  own, 
under  analosfous  circumstances.  He  had  no  oreat  fund 
of  humor,  but  the  absurdity  of  the  whole  affair,  and  the 
excellent  materials  in  his  possession  for  a  reply  to  a  call 
for  explanations,  struck  him  in  a  most  amusing  light. 
Shakinor  with  merriment,  he  hinted  to  his  informant  the 
satisfaction  the  call  would  o-ive  him.  He  never  after- 
ward  heard  a  lisp  on  the  subject." 

President  Jefferson  had  abolished  all  etiquette  in 
regard  to  official  precedence  when  he  went  in  office, 
and  Mrs.  Merry  knew  this,  but  she  never  forgave  the 
occurrence,  and  never  afterward  went  to  the  White 
House.  Mrs.  Madison  regretted  being  the  innocent 
cause  of  such  a  trouble,  but  she  was  spared  further  noto- 
liety  by  the  absence  of  the  British  Minister  or  his  family 
ever  afterward  at  the  President's  reunions.  The  affair  was 
not,  however,  destined  to  end  here,  for  after  the  first 
clamor  had  subsided,  the  President,  throuijh  another  for- 
eign  Minister,  inquired  if  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Merry  would  ac- 
cept an  invitation  to  a  family  dinner.  It  was  understood 
that  they  would  accept,  and  Mr.  Jefferson  wrote  the  invi- 


206  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

tation  himself.  Mr.  Merry  addressed  a  note  to  the  Sec- 
retary of  State  to  know  if  he  was  invited  in  his  private 
or  official  capacity ;  "  if  in  the  one,  he  must  obtain  the 
permission  of  his  sovereign  ;  if  in  the  other,  he  must  re- 
ceive an  assurance  in  advance  that  he  would  be  treated 
as  became  his  position."  Mr,  Madison  ended  the  corre- 
spondence with  a  very  dry  note.  Thomas  Moore,  who 
was  travellingr  in  the  United  States  at  this  time,  and 
being  a  friend  of  Mrs.  Merry's,  and  disgusted  with  his 
reception,  fell  to  lampooning  the  President  and  every- 
thing American,  except  a  few  attentive  Federal  gentle- 
men and  ladies. 

In  1 817,  President  Madison's  term  expired,  and  his 
Secretary  of  State,  James  Monroe,  assumed  the  duties 
of  President.  Washinorton  had  so  lono-  been  the  home 
of  Mrs.  Madison,  that  it  was  with  much  regret  she  pre- 
pared to  leave  the  city.  Many  and  dear  were  her 
friends,  and  the  society  of  relatives  was  another  strong 
link  binding  her  to  the  city. 

Always  fond  of  agricultural  pursuits,  Mr.  Madison 
joyfully  returned  to  his  beautiful  and  peaceful  home. 
Montpelier  was  within  less  than  a  day's  ride  of  Monti- 
cello,  and  in  the  estimate  of  a  Virginian,  Mr.  Jefferson 
and  Mr.  Madison  were  neighbors. 

The  National  Republican,  of  November  2d,  1S31,  thus 
speaks  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Madison: 

"How  must  they  look  in  these  days  on  the  tempestu- 
ous sea  of  liberty;  on  the  dangers  incident  to  the  little 
barks  now  floating  on  its  agitated  surface.     Can  they 


.'  u.    •*'t 


RETIRING    TO    PRIVATE    LIFE.  207 

feel  for  the  safety  of  that  on  which  embarked  the  for- 
tunes of  Henry  Clay?  We  hope  and  trust  they  do; 
and  at  any  rate  we  rejoice  that,  safe  in  port,  they  can 
review  with  just  pride  and  pleasure  their  own  safe  and 
triumphant  voyage,  and  can  recollect  the  auspicious  day 
of  their  landing.  One  of  them  the  rallying  point,  the 
beginning  and  end  of  the  cabinet  in  all  of  its  just  works, 
and  the  other  the  chief  ornament  and  glory  of  the  draw- 
ing-room, in  the  purest  and  most  intelligent  days  of 
our  Republic." 

"Embosomed  among  the  hills  which  lie  at  the  foot  of 
the  South  Mountain,  is  the  paternal  estate  of  Mr.  Madi- 
son, A  larfre  and  commodious  mansion,  designed  more 
for  comfort  and  hospitality  than  ornament  and  display, 
rises  at  the  foot  of  a  high  wooded  hill,  which,  while  it 
affords  shelter  from  the  northwest  winds,  adds  much  to 
the  picturesque  beauty  of  the  scene.  The  grounds 
around  the  house  owe  their  ornaments  more  to  nature 
than  art,  as,  with  the  exception  of  a  fine  garden  behind,, 
and  a  wide-spread  lawn  before  the  house,  for  miles 
around  the  ever-varying  and  undulating  surface  of  the 
ground  is  covered  with  forest  trees.  The  extreme  salu- 
brity of  the  situation  induced  the  proprietor  to  call  it 
Montpelier. 

"One  winor  of  the  house  duringf  her  lifetime  was  ex- 
clusively  appropriated  to  the  venerable  and  venerated 
mother  of  Mr.  Madison,  to  which  were  attached  offices 
and  gardens,  forming  a  separate  establishment,  where 
this  aged  matron  preserved  the  habits  and  the   hours 


2IO  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

and  amused,  the  languid  hours  of  his  long  confinement; 
he  knew,  appreciated,  and  acknowledged  the  blessing 
which  heaven  had  bestowed  on  him  in  eivinof  him  such  a 
wife." 

At  about  sixty-six  years  of  age  Mr.  Madison  retired 
from  public  life,  and  ever  after  resided  on  his  estate  in 
Virginia,  except  about  two  months  while  at  Richmond 
as  a  member  of  the  convention  in  1829,  which  sat  there 
to  remodel  the  constitution  of  that  State.  His  farm,  his 
books,  his  friends,  and  his  correspondence,  were  the 
sources  of  his  enjoyment  and  occupation  during  the 
twenty  years  of  his  retirement.  During  most  of  that 
time  his  health,  never  robust,  was  as  good  as  usual,  and 
he  partook  with  pleasure  of  the  exercise  and  the  con- 
viviality in  which  he  had  always  enjoyed  himself. 

At  eighty-five  years  of  age,  though  much  reduced  by 
debility,  his  mind  was  bright,  his  memory  retentive,  and 
his  conversation  highly  instructive  and  delightful.  Suffer- 
ing with  disease,  he  never  repined.  Serene  and  even 
lively,  he  still  loved  to  discuss  the  constitution,  to  incul- 
cate the  public  good,  and  to  charge  his  friends  with 
blessings  for  his  country.  He  was  long  one  of  the  most 
interesting  shrines  to  which  its  votaries  repaired:  a  relic 
of  republican  virtue  which  none  could  contemplate  with- 
out reverence  and  edification. 

On  the  28th  of  June,  1836,  he  died;  as  serene,  philo- 
sophical, and  calm  in  the  last  moments  of  existence  as 
he  had  been  in  all  the  trying  occasions  of  life. 

In  the  winter  of  1836,  Mrs.  Madison  wrote  to  Presi- 


A    NATIONS    GRATITUDE.  211 

dent  Jackson  in  regard  to  a  manuscript  left  by  her 
husband  and  which  he  intended  for  pubhcation.  The 
copyright  had  been  offered  to  several  publishing  houses, 
but  their  offers  had  fallen  so  far  below  her  expectations, 
that  she  determined  to  lay  the  matter  before  the  Chief 
Magistrate.  In  a  special  message,  the  President  com- 
municated the  contents  of  her  letter  to  Congress,  and 
the  manuscript  was  purchased  as  a  national  work,  and 
thirty  thousand  dollars  paid  her  for  it. 

The  novel  and  interesting  features  of  the  case,  the 
venerable  relict  of  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Republic 
coming  before  the  country  with  a  manuscript  precious 
in  its  relation  to  its  national  destiny,  were  such  that  the 
proposition  was  not  to  be  met  with  a  cold  appreciation 
of  merits,  or  with  nice  questions  of  Congressional  power. 
It  was  this  feeling  also  which  induced  Congress  to  pass 
a  subsequent  act,  giving  to  Mrs.  Madison  the  honorary 
privilege  of  a  copyright  in  foreign  countries.  The  work 
is  a  record  of  the  Debates  in  the  congress  of  the  conven- 
tion during  the  years  i  782-1  787. 

Congress  also  conferred  the  franking  privilege  upon 
Mrs.  Madison,  and  voted  her  a  seat  upon  the  floor  of  the 
Senate. 

The  last  twelve  years  of  Mrs.  Madison's  life  were  spent 
in  Washington,  where  she  mingled  in  the  society  of  the 
young  and  happy,  as  well  as  the  aged  and  recluse.  Many 
remember  her  dignified  bearing,  and  gentle,  kind  manner 
in  her  old  age,  and  it  was  considered  a  pleasure  to  be 
a  guest  where  she  was  to  be  present.     On  New  Year's 


212  DOROTHY    P.    MADISON. 

and  Fourth  of  July,  she  held  public  receptions,  and  the 
throng  of  visitors  was  equal  to  that  which  assembled  at 
the  President's  house.  She  took  up  her  residence  in 
Washington  in  1837,  in  the  house  in  which  she  died. 
This  house  on  the  southeast  corner  of  H.  street  North 
and  Madison  Place  was  built  by  President  Madison  in 
1 819;  after  her  death  it  was  purchased  by  Captain 
Wilkes  and  by  him  enlarged.  She  died  on  the  12th  of 
July,  1849,  ^t  the  age  of  eighty-two  years.  Her  funeral, 
which  was  attended  by  a  large  concourse  of  people,  took 
place  on  the  i6th,  from  St.  John's  Episcopal  Church, 
and  the  interment  took  place  at  Montpelier.  The  grave 
is  near  by  that  of  her  husband's,  over  which  latter  a 
noble  monument  stands.  The  old  homestead  has 
passed  into  other  hands,  but  it  will  ever  be  associated 
with  the  illustrious  man  who  gave  it  name  and  fame, 
and  the  fact  that  it  is  the  last  resting-place  of  the  fourth 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  of  his  wife,  will  ever 
hallow  it  in  the  hearts  of  reverent  Americans. 


V. 

ELIZABETH  K.  MONROE. 

The  era  in  which  Mrs.  Monroe  lived  was  the  most 
eventful  in  the  history  of  nations,  and  her  record 
is  of  interest  and  value,  in  a  twofold  degree.  The 
women  who  stamp  the  influence  of  their  virtues  on  a 
time  of  public  excitement  and  wonderful  changes,  bear 
in  their  natures  strength  of  character  worthy  of  emu- 
lation ;  and  they  become  the  benefactors  of  succeeding 
ages,  as  they  were  the  blessings  of  their  own.  The  me- 
morials of  such  should  be  familiar  to  the  children  oi 
America,  who  under  the  genius  of  Republican  institu- 
tions, are  the  inheritors  of,  and  successors  to,  their  fame 
and  positions.  No  daughter  of  Columbia  should  be 
ignorant  of  the  history  and  experiences  of  their  national 
ancestors,  whose  lives  were  beautiful  in  their  simplicity, 
and  rich  in  varied  experiences. 

The  rarest  treasure  our  country  possesses  is  the 
fame  of  her  children ;  and  her  noblest  legacy  to  pos- 
terity should  be  the  record  of  those,  who  by  their  talents 
have  adorned,  and  by  their  wisdom  sustained,  the 
pioneers  of  liberty  in  their  first  weak  efforts.  Of  such 
a  class  was  Mrs.  Monroe,  whose  husband  for  half  a  cen- 
tury reaped  the  reward  of  his  country's  constancy,  and 
filled  in   that  period   more  important  offices   than  any 

other  man  in  the  United  States. 

(213) 


214  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

Statesmen  In  this  country  are  too  often  forced  to  give 
way  to  politicians,  and  patriots  to  demagogues.  The 
perpetual  agitations  of  a  Republic  carry  up  on  the  flood 
those  who  in  turn  are  swept  down  with  the  tide;  while 
in  the  commotion  many  are  lost  to  history.  But  this  is 
less  the  case  with  Virginia  statesmen  than  with  any 
other  class  of  public  men.  Whatever  may  be  said  of 
the  ingratitude  of  other  States,  the  "Old  Mother"  has 
been  true  to  her  children,  and  the  caprice  and  change- 
ableness  of  younger  commonwealths  but  render  her 
trust  and  confidence  the  more  conspicuous.  And  if  she 
has  trusted  implicitly  the  integrity  of  her  offspring,  she 
has  been  rewarded  by  the  love  and  fidelity  of  the 
noblest  public  men  of  the  nation. 

The  inauguration  of  Washington  at  New  York,  m 
1 789,  was  followed  by  the  immediate  assembling  of 
Congress,  and  thither  went  Mr.  Monroe,  as  Senator 
from  Virginia,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Jefferson,  the  newly- 
appointed  Secretary  of  State. 

The  ancient  seat  of  the  Dutch  dynasty  on  this  Conti- 
nent was  a  place  of  much  wealth ;  and  not  the  least  of 
its  possessions  were  the  bright-eyed,  rosy-cheeked  de- 
scendants of  the  rich  old  Patroons,  whose  delight  knew 
no  bounds  when  their  city  was  chosen  as  the  capital. 
No  less  pleased  were  their  fathers  who,  in  their  capaci- 
ties as  merchants  and  capitalists,  hoped  to  achieve  new 
honors  and  increased  wealth. 

The  festivities  which  subsequently  followed  the  in- 
auguration were  attended  by  all  the  members  of  Con- 


MARRIAGE    IN    NEW    YORK.  215 

gress,  who,  as  strangers  of  distinction,  received  the 
largest  share  of  the  young  belles'  attention.  Prominent 
among  these  belles  was  Miss  Elizabeth  Kortright,  the 
daughter  of  Lawrence  Kortright,  a  former  captain  in 
the  British  army.  After  the  peace  of  1783,  he  remained 
with  his  family  in  New  York,  where  his  children  were 
reared  and  educated.  Of  this  interesting  family  there 
were  one  son  and  four  daughters,  two  of  whom,  Mrs. 
Heyliger,  of  Santa  Cruz,  whose  husband,  Mr.  Heyliger, 
had  been  Grand  Chamberlain  to  the  King  of  Denmark, 
and  Mrs,  Knox,  were  married  when  Congress  assembled 
in  their  adopted  city.  The  other  daughter  was  the  wife 
of  Nicholas  Gouverneur  of  New  York.* 

Mrs.  Monroe's  marriage  took  place  in  New  York,  in 
1786,  while  Mr.  Monroe  was  attending  a  session  of 
Congress.  Soon  after  their  marriage  they  took  up 
their  abode  in  Philadelphia,  whither  the  seat  of  the 
General  Government  had  been  removed.  In  this  po- 
sition he  remained  until  i  794,  when  he  was  appointed 
from  the  Senate  to  be  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Min- 
ister Plenipotentiary  to  France.  Thus  is  shadowed 
forth  the  five  years  of  Mrs.  Monroe's  life  succeeding 
her  marriage.  Nothing  more  definite  can  be  gathered. 
It  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  no  biographer  of  her  day 
anticipated  the  needs  of  a  coming  generation,  and  tran- 
scribed, with  all  the  facts  and  incidents  fresh  in  his  mind, 


*  The  only  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Knox  married  Colonel  Alexander  Hamil- 
ton, son  of  the  statesman,  Alexander  Hamilton. 


21 6  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

an  Impartial  account  of  the  every-day  existence  of  the 
woman  whose  memory  appeals  now  for  justice. 

Very  little  was  written  of  her  during  her  life,  beyond 
occasional  mention  after  her  husband's  election  to  the 
Presidency,  nor  has  any  history  of  his  life  been  written 
from  which  to  "[lean  even  a  mention  of  her  name.  This 
is  a  remarkable  fact,  that  In  none  of  the  public  libraries 
of  New  York  or  Brooklyn,  Is  there  any  history  of  a  man 
who  occupied  the  Presidential  chair  eight  years,  and 
whose  record  should  be  the  Inheritance  of  his  descend- 
ants. A  brief  sketch,  written  many  years  ago.  Is  all  that 
was  to  be  found,  and  there  is  no  mention  of  his  wife  in  It. 

Of  dignified  and  stately  manners  was  Mrs.  Monroe,  and 
possessed  of  a  face  upon  which  beauty  was  written  in  un- 
mistakable lines.  Tall  and  gracefully  formed,  polished 
and  elegant  in  society,  she  was  one  fitted  to  represent 
her  countrywomen  at  the  court  of  St.  Cloud.  Her  posi- 
tion, as  the  wife  of  a  wealthy  Virginia  Senator,  sur- 
rounded by  luxury  and  prosperity,  proud  of  her  husband 
and  of  her  country,  was  calculated  to  enhance  the 
pleasure  of  a  trip  to  Europe,  while  the  comparative  In- 
frequency  of  a  voyage  across  the  Atlantic  heightened  the 
pleasure  with  which  she  received  the  announcement  of 
his  appointment. 

Durinof  their  residence  In  Paris,  the  eldest  dauehter 
of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Monroe,  who  afterwards  married  Judge 
George   Hay,  of  Richmond,  Virginia,'''  was  a  pupil  at 

*  Their  eldest  daughter,  Hortensia,  a  very  beautiful   girl,  married  Lord   Rogers, 
of  Baltimore. 


MR.  MONROE  S   CAREER.  2  I  7 

Madame  Campari's  celebrated  school,  where  Hortense 
Beauharnais,  the  daughter  of  Josephine,  and  the  future 
Queen  of  Holland  and  mother  of  Napoleon  III.,  was 
also  a  pupil,  and  between  whom  there  existed  a  w^arm 
friendship. 

Young  and  ambitious,  full  of  enthusiasm  and  admira- 
tion for  the  principles  of  a  free  government,  Mr.  Monroe 
left  the  shores  of  his  native  land,  whose  liberty  he  had  so 
recently  assisted  in  establishing.  He  had  entered  the 
service  of  his  country  as  a  cadet  in  a  corps  under  the 
command  of  the  gallant  General  Mercer,  of  Virginia. 
Soon  afterward  he  was  appointed  a  lieutenant,  and  joined 
the  army  at  New  York,  Following  the  fortunes  of  the 
Chief,  he  was  with  him  at  Trenton,  Princeton,  Brandy- 
wine,  Germantown  and  Monmouth.  Retiring  from  the 
staff  of  Lord  Sterling,  where  he  had  served  two  cam- 
paigns, after  being  wounded  in  the  shoulder  at  Trenton, 
he  repaired  to  Virginia  to  raise  a  regiment.  From  va- 
rious causes  he  failed  in  this  undertaking,  and  did  not 
return  to  the  army,  but  entered  Mr.  Jefferson's  office  as 
a  student  at  law.  A  member  of  the  Legislature,  and  at 
the  age  of  twenty-four  elected  to  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, from  which  he  passed  to  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  we  find  him  from  his  earliest  boyhood 
devoted  to  the  land  of  his  birth,  and  serving  it  in  these 
various  positions  of  honor  and  eminence. 

But  glowing  with  youthful  admiration  for  the  Republic 
he  had  left  behind,  he  was  not  careful  to  conceal  his  feel- 
ings  in   imperial   France,  and  hence  made   himself  un- 


2l8  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

popular  with  those  in  power.  He  was  deemed  too  en- 
thusiastically engaged  in  the  feelings  of  revolutionary 
France  to  do  justice  to  his  own  country,  and  he  was 
recalled  by  Washington. 

In  x^ugust,  1792,  Lafayette  was  taken  prisoner  by  the 
Austrians,  and  after  being  thrown  like  a  criminal  in  the 
Prussian  dungeon  at  Wesel  on  the  Rhine,  was  trans- 
ferred successively  to  Magdeburg,  Glatz,  Neisse,  and 
finally  to  Olmutz.  In  this  Austrian  dungeon  he  was 
convinced  by  the  rigor  of  his  confinement  and  the  brutal 
treatment  of  his  captors  that  his  fate  was  sealed. 
Down  in  his  dark  cell,  ten  paces  deep,  where  the  rain 
through  the  loop-holes  poured,  and  the  sun  did  not  shine, 
the  young  defender  of  American  liberty  lay  chained, 
while  the  weary  months  dragged  by,  and  no  word  of 
hope  or  certainty  of  death  came  from  his  wife  and 
children  left  behind  in  Paris.  Wasted  by  disease,  de- 
prived of  light,  air,  and  decent  food — the  loathsome 
dampness  and  filth  of  his  dungeon  so  reducing  him  that 
his  hair  fell  from  him  entirely  by  the  excess  of  his  suffer- 
ings, his  cruel  tormentors  cheered  his  gloom  and  oppres- 
sion by  no  word  or  look  of  sympathy.  America  knew 
the  fate  of  his  loved  ones,  and  while  his  estates  were 
confiscated,  his  wife  in  the  prison  of  La  Force,  and  his 
little  children,  two  of  whom  shared  the  confinement  of 
their  mother,  awaiting  the  wrath  of  their  oppressors,  the 
agents  of  the  country  whose  once  hopeless  cause  he  had 
espoused  were  actively  employed  in  behalf  of  their 
former  friend. 


SYMrATHY    FOR    MADAME    LAFAYEITE.  219 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  that  Mrs.  Monroe  shared  the 
feehng  entertained  by  her  husband,  or  that  her  warmest 
womanly  feehngs  were  stirred  by  the  recital  of  Madame 
Lafayette's  woes.  The  Marquis  de  Lafayette  was  adored 
by  Americans,  and  the  indignities  heaped  upon  his 
heroic  wife  could  scarcely  be  borne  by  the  Minister  and 
his  family,  when  they  felt  that  the  death  of  a  martyr 
would  be  the  result  of  her  cruel  and  protracted  confine- 
ment. The  lofty  position  America  had  just  assumed 
among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  the  respect  engen- 
dered by  her  success  rendered  her  Ministers  in  foreign 
countries  objects  of  special  attention  and  regard.  When 
Mr,  Monroe  decided  to  risk  displeasure  by  sending  his 
wife  to  see  Madame  Lafayette,  he  appreciated  the  decided 
effect  it  would  have  for  good  or  evil.  He  well  knew 
that  either  it  would  meet  with  si<jnal  success,  and  be  of 
tenefit  to  his  unfortunate  friend,  or  render  her  slight 
claim  to  clemency  yet  more  desperate.  Enlisted  as  his 
feelings  were,  he  determined  to  risk  the  die,  and  Mrs. 
Monroe  was  consulted  in  regard  to  die  plan.  To  her 
husband's  anxious  queries,  she  replied  calmly,  and 
assured  him  of  her  ability  to  control  and  sustain  herself 

As  the  carriage  of  the  American  Minister,  adorned 
with  all  the  outward  emblems  of  rank,  halted  before  the 
entrance  of  the  prison,  the  keeper  advanced  to  know  the 
object  of  the  visit.  Mrs.  Monroe,  with  firm  step  and 
steady  voice,  alighted  and  made  known  her  business, 
and  to  her  surprise  was  conducted  to  the  reception 
room,  while  the  official  retired  to  make  known  her  re- 


2  20  •  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

quest.  Her  heart  beat  loudly  as  she  alone  listened  to 
the  tread  of  the  jailer  as  he  closed  the  heavy  door  and 
passed  down  the  long  hall  which  separated  the  cells. 
After  a  lapse  of  time,  which  to  one  in  her  nervous  state 
seemed  an  age,  she  heard  the  footsteps  returning,  and 
soon  the  opening  of  the  ponderous  door  discovered  to 
her  astonished  view  the  presence  of  the  emaciated 
prisoner,  assisted  by  her  guard. 

The  emotion  of  the  marchioness  was  touching  in  the 
extreme,  and  she  sank  at  the  feet  of  Mrs.  Monroe, 
unable  to  articulate  her  joy. 

All  day  she  had  been  expecting  the  summons  to  pre- 
pare for  her  execution,  and  when  the  silence  of  her  cell 
was  disturbed  by  the  approach  of  the  gendarmes,  her 
last  hope  was  fast  departing.  Instead  of  the  cruel  an- 
nouncement— the  assurance  that  a  visitor  awaited  her 
presence  in  the  receiving-room  of  the  prison,  and  on 
finding  in  that  visitor  the  American  Ambassadress,  the 
representative  of  her  husband's  adopted  home,  her  long- 
pent  feelings  found  relief  in  sobs.  The  reaction  was 
sudden,  and  the  shock  more  than  her  feeble  frame  could 
bear. 

The  presence  of  the  sentinels  precluded  all  efforts  at 
conversation,  and  both  hesitated  to  peril  the  frail  chance 
of  life,  or  to  abuse  the  unheard-of  privilege  of  an  inter- 
view. After  a  painful  stay  of  short  duration  Mrs.  Mon- 
roe rose  to  retire,  assuring  her  friend  in  a  voice  audible 
to  her  listeners,  for  whom  it  was  intended,  that  she 
would  call  the  following  morning,  and  then  hastened  to 
relieve  the  anxiety  of  her  husband. 


A   VISIT   THAT    SAVES    A    LIFE.  221 

Madame  Lafayette's  long-delayed  execution  had  been 
decided  upon,  and  that  very  afternoon  she  was  to  have 
been  beheaded,  but  the  unexpected  visit  of  the  Min- 
ister's wife  altered  the  minds  of  the  officials,  and  to  the 
surprise  of  all,  she  was  liberated  the  next  morning. 

The  prestige  of  the  young  Republic  was  appreciated 
by  the  French  in  power,  and  they  dared  not,  from  mo- 
tives of  self-interest,  sacrifice  a  lady  in  whom  the  Ameri- 
can Minister  was  so  directly  interested.  They  had  not 
forgotten  with  what  admiration  the  people  of  the  United 
States  looked  upon  her  husband,  the  Marquis  de  La- 
fayette. 

Deaf  to  all  the  entreaties  of  her  friends,  and  firm  in 
her  determination  to  carry  immediate  consolation  to  the 
dungeon  of  her  persecuted  husband,  Madame  Lafayette 
left  Paris  accompanied  by  her  two  daughters  in  disguise, 
and  under  the  protection  of  American  passports. 

Passing  under  the  name  of  Mrs.  Motier,  she  landed 
at  Altona  on  the  ninth  of  September,  1795,  and  after 
repeated  difficulties  eventually  reached  the  prison, 
where  she  was  notified  that  if  she  passed  its  threshold, 
she  must  remain. 

The  heroic  woman  signed  her  consent  and  determina- 
tion, to  share  his  captivity  in  all  its  details,  being  "fully 
determined  never  again  to  expose  herself  to  the  horrors 
of  another  separation." 

The  two  most  conspicuous  men  of  their  age,  George 
Washington  and  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  effected  by  their 
co-operation  the  release  of  Lafayette  and  his  deeply- 


22  2  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

injured  family — the  former  after  an  imprisonment  of 
more  than  five  years,  the  latter  a  period  of  twenty-two 
months, 

Mr.  Monroe  was  recalled,  and  after  his  return  to 
America,  he  published  a  justification  of  his  conduct  while 
abroad  ;  the  pamphlet  settled  nothing,  but  justified  both 
parties  in  the  views  which  they  had  taken. 

Thus  was  Mrs.  Monroe's  short  stay  in  Europe 
brought  to  a  termination.  In  many  ways  it  had  been 
pleasant  and  beneficial,  and  although  she  regretted  her 
husband's  unfortunate  recall,  she  rather  joyed  in  the 
conduct  which  had  produced  this  result.  Unacquainted 
with  diplomacy  and  the  line  of  action  necessary  between 
nations,  she  allowed  her  own  feelings  to  decide  her 
movements,  and  honored  the  same  spirit  in  her  hus- 
band. The  privilege  of  being  a  succor  and  means  of 
relief  to  Madame  Lafayette  satisfied  her  more  than  min- 
isterial honors,  and  she  would  rather  have  performed 
this  deed  prompted  by  Mr.  Monroe's  advice  than  re- 
mained the  wife  of  the  Ambassador. 

The  friendship  between  Mr.  Monroe  and  Lafayette 
was  very  strong.  The  latter  felt  that  Mr.  Monroe  was 
largely  instrumental  in  the  presentation  of  the  ^200,000 
which  the  United  States  gave  him  In  1S24,  and  also  for 
kindness  shown  his  son,  George  Washington  Lafayette, 
when  he  was  in  prison.  The  lad  was  about  to  be  con- 
scripted Into  the  army,  and  Mr.  Monroe,  aided  by  two 
Anierlcan  gendemen,  Joseph  Russell  and  Col.  Perkins, 
raised  the  amount  necessary  to  buy  a  substitute  (;^i,50o), 


RETURNS    TO    NEW    YORK.  223 

and  then  sent  him  to  America,  where  he  was  the  guest 
of  Washington  for  a  year. 

When  news  reached  Lafayette  in  1828  of  the  pecuniary 
trouble  which  Mr.  Monroe  was  in,  and  the  ill  health  of 
his  wife,  he  wrote  him  offering  him  the  proceeds  of  the 
sale  of  half  of  his  Florida  lands,  which  were  very  valuable, 
as  a  loan,  and  urging  Mr.  Monroe  not  to  mortify  him 
by  a  refusal,  since  he  had  accepted  like  favors  from  him 
in  the  past.  The  generous  offer  was  declined  by  Mr. 
Monroe. 

Paris  as  now,  thouo;h  in  a  less  decree,  was  the  centre 
of  all  that  was  to  be  enjoyed,  and  Mrs.  Monroe  did 
not  regret  her  stay  there,  though  so  abruptly  ended. 
This  first  trip  over  the  tedious  waters  was  fraught  with 
interest  and  improvement  to  both.  New  fields  of  thought 
were  explored  by  them,  and  the  expanse  of  their  souls, 
under  a  sense  of  freedom  and  change,  gained  for  their 
ultimate  happiness  more  than  mere  worldly  honors  could 
eive  or  take  awav. 

Thus  in  the  devious  windings  of  life  we  are  constantly 
reminded  that  after  the  lesson  is  the  application,  and  ex- 
perience pronounces  both,  though  hard  to  bear,  necessary 
for  ultimate  progression. 

Mrs.  Monroe  returned  to  New  York  with  her  husband, 
who  was  looked  upon  as  a  disgraced  minister,  and  being 
the  first  who  had  been  so  designated,  was  viewed  by  liis 
friends  with  deep  sympathy.  For  a  time  the  society  of 
her  family  and  friends  soothed  her  sensitive  feelings,  but 
she  soon  afterwards  accompanied  her  husband  to  Vir- 
ginia, where  he  was  at  once  chosen  Governor. 


2  24  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

This  evidence  of  affection  gladdened  die  hearts  of  both 
recipients,  and  during  the  constitutional  term  of  three 
years,  through  which  he  served,  Mrs.  Monroe  added  to 
the  dignity  and  success  of  his  official  life  by  her  uniform 
and  acceptable  course.  The  capital  of  the  State  at  that 
time  was  Williamsburg,  a  place  of  refined  hospitality 
and  sociability,  and  here  the  fine  character  of  the  Gov- 
ernor's wife  was  discovered  under  the  most  delicate  cir- 
cumstances, as  well  as  during  the  most  pleasing  occasions. 

After  President  Jefferson  came  into  power,  he  ap- 
pointed Mr.  Monroe  Envoy  Extraordinary  to  the  Court 
of  France,  to  act  with  Mr.  Livino^ston  in  neeotiatine  for 
the  purchase  of  Louisiana.  As  soon  as  he  arrived  on 
the  French  soil,  Mr.  Livingston  wrote  as  follows  to 
him : 

Paris,  loth  of  April,  1S03. 

Dear  Sir  : — I  congratulate  you  on  your  safe  arrival. 
We  have  long  and  anxiously  wished  for  you.  God  grant 
that  your  mission  may  answer  your  and  the  public  ex- 
pectation. War  may  do  something  for  us ;  nothing  else 
would.  I  have  paved  the  way  for  you,  and  if  you  could 
add  to  my  memoirs  an  assurance  that  we  were  now  in 
possession  of  New  Orleans,  we  should  do  well.  But  I 
detain  Mr.  Beutalon,  who  is  impatient  to  fly  to  the  arms 
of  his  wife.  I  have  apprised  the  minister  of  your  arrival, 
and  told  him  you  would  be  here  on  Tuesday  or  Wednes- 
day. Present  my  compliments  and  Mrs.  Livingston's  to 
Mrs.  Monroe,  and  believe  me,  dear  sir,  your  friend  and 
humble  servant,  Robert  R.  Livingston. 


DOMESTIC    LIFE    AT    OAK    HILL.  225 

After  the  business  of  the  treaty  was  arranged,  Mr. 
Monroe  was  sent  as  Minister  to  London,  to  succeed  Mr. 
Kincr,  who  wished  to  return  home.  From  there  he  was 
ordered  to  Spain,  which  country  he  visited  by  way  of 
Paris.  Mrs.  Monroe  accompanied  him  in  all  his  wan- 
derings, and  returned  with  him  to  England  soon  after 
the  death  of  Mr.  Pitt. 

Mr.  Monroe  was  minister  to  England  when  the  attack 
on  the  frigate  "Chesapeake"  placed  the  two  countries, 
already  irritated,  in  a  hostile  attitude,  and  finding  his 
position  at  the  St.  James  anything  but  pleasant,  he  re- 
turned to  this  country.  Thus  did  Mrs.  Monroe  spend 
almost  ten  years  in  Europe,  returning  only  when  the 
country  was  plunging  again  into  a  second  war  with  the 
mother  land.  She  gladly  sought  retirement  at  Oak  Hill, 
•her  husband's  Virginia  home,  and  the  following  years 
passed  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  serene  pleasures  of 
country  life — Mr.  Monroe  engaged  during  the  day  in 
reading  and  taking  the  general  supervision  of  his  plan- 
tation, while  she  supervised  the  education  of  their  two 
dauofhters  and  the  household  duties,  which  in  a  Viroinia 
home  were  always  arduous. 

But  this  quiet  home-life  was  not  destined  to  last,  and 
the  husband  and  father  resumed  the  duties  of  a  politician, 
and  was  elected  to  the  Legislature.  In  a  few  months  he 
was  aorain  chosen  Governor  of  the  old  commonwealth, 
and  continued  to  discharge  the  duties  of  that  office  until 
chosen  Secretary  of  State  by  President  Madison. 

When  the  war  of  1812  was  declared,  Mrs.  Monroe  was 
15 


2  26  ELIZABETH    K,    MONROE. 

living  in  Washington  City,  dispensing  the  duties  of  a 
minister's  wife,  and  enjoying  the  society  of  her  two 
daughters. 

As  the  strife  came  nearer  home  and  the  capital  was 
threatened,  she  returned  to  Oak  Hill,  and  there  remained 
until  peace  was  finally  proclaimed.  Anxious  and  uneasy 
about  her  husband,  who  was  ever  beside  the  President, 
she  yet  felt  that  her  place  was  at  her  own  home,  that  he 
might  feel  assured  of  the  safety  of  herself  and  children. 

In  1817,  Mr.  Monroe  became  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  removed  his  family  to  the  White  House, 
where  they  continued  to  reside  during  both  terms  of  his 
administration.  Mrs.  Monroe  was  spoken  of  at  this  time 
by  the  leading  paper  of  the  day  as  follows : 

"  Mrs.  Monroe  is  an  elegant,  accomplished  woman. 
She  possesses  a  charming  mind  and  dignity  of  man- 
ners, which  peculiarly  fit  her  for  her  elevated  station. 
Her  retired  domestic  habits  will  be  much  annoyed  by 
what  is  here  called  society,  if  she  does  not  change  the 
etiquette  (if  it  may  be  called  so),  established  by  Mrs. 
Washington,  Adams  and  Madison,  a  routine  which  her 
feeble  constitution  will  not  permit  her  to  encounter.  To 
go  through  it,  she  must  become  a  perfect  slave  to  the 
sacrifice  of  her  health.  The  secretaries,  senators,  foreign 
ministers,  consuls,  auditors,  accountants,  officers  of  the 
navy  and  army  of  every  grade,  farmers,  merchants,  par- 
sons, priests,  lawyers,  judges,  auctioneers  and  nothinga- 
rians— all  with  their  wives  and  some  with  their  gawky 
offspring,  crowd  to  the  President's  house  every  Wednes- 


A    LADY   OF    RETIRED    HABITS.  22  7 

day  evening;  some  in  shoes,  most  in  boots,  and  many  In 
spurs ;  some  snuffing,  others  chewing,  and  many  longing 
for  their  cigars  and  whiskey-punch  left  at  home.  Some 
with  powdered  heads,  others  frizzled  and  oiled,  with 
some  whose  heads  a  comb  has  never  touched,  half-hid  by 
dirty  collars,  reaching  far  above  their  ears,  as  stiff  as 
pasteboard." 

And  an  Encrlish  writer  comments  in  a  similar  strain : 

"  Mrs.  Monroe  is  a  lady  of  retired  and  domestic  habits, 
not  ungraceful  and  apparently  very  amiable. 

"  Having  resided  in  Europe  with  her  husband,  she 
has  acquired  some  of  its  manners  and  a  good  deal  of  its 
polish.  She  receives  company,  but  returns  no  visits; 
she  seems  more  attached  to  the  silence  and  peace  of 
obscurity,  than  the  bustle,  confusion  and  glare  of  public 
assemblies.  But  to  preserve  a  custom  established  by 
her  predecessor,  a  lady  it  is  said  of  great  elegance  of 
manners  and  much  dignity  of  deportment,  she  gives 
what  are  termed  'drawing-rooms'  for  the  purpose  of 
gratifying  the  wishes  and  curiosity  of  such  strangers  as 
may  please  to  visit  her  and  the  President. 

"These  drawing-rooms  are  conducted  on  principles 
of  republican  simplicity,  and  are  widely  different  from 
the  magnificence  and  splendor  of  the  English  levees. 
They  appeared  to  me,  however,  very  unpleasant;  the 
rooms  are  so  crowded,  the  hum  of  voices  so  loud,  and 
the  motion  of  the  company  so  incessant,  that  the  possi- 
bility of  continuing  a  conversation  on  any  subject  is 
wholly  precluded,  and    you    are  jostled    every   instant 


2  28  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

without  the  power  of  enjoying  the  '  feast  of  reason '  or 
even  the  pleasure  of  the  senses." 

The  White  House  had  been  partly  rebuilt  when  Mr. 
Monroe  became  President,  but  it  possessed  but  few  com- 
forts and  no  elegance.  The  furniture  was  not  of  the 
kind  nor  quality  befitting  the  house  of  the  Chief  Magis- 
trate, and  the  debris  of  the  former  ill-fated  building  lay 
in  heaps  about  the  mansion.  The  country  being  once 
more  at  peace,  Congress  ordered  Consul  Lee,  then  re 
siding  at  Paris,  to  purchase  a  silver  service  of  plate, 
which  was  forwarded  at  once,  and  which  has  continued 
in  use  until  replaced  by  a  more  modern  and  expensive 
set  in  March,  '69.  , 

About  the  same  time  was  bought  for  the  East  Room 
the  furniture  which  now  adorns  that  famous  apartment. 
When  the  purchase  was  made  in  Paris,  each  article  was 
surmounted  by  the  royal  crown  of  Louis  XVIII.  This 
ornament  of  gilt  was  removed,  and  the  American  Eagle 
substituted  before  it  was  sent  from  France.  To  the 
thoughtful  mind  this  furniture  is  of  interest  in  so  far  as 
it  recalls  the  dead  who  have  long  since  crumbled  back 
to  dust,  yet,  whose  memory  is  associated  with  the  chairs 
and  ottomans  still  remaining  where  they  were  placed 
years  ago.  True,  they  have  been  often  repaired,  but  the 
original  eagles  are  as  bright  as  when  they  left  the  shores 
of  the  Empire,  to  grace  the  house  of  the  Republic. 

Mrs.  Monroe  mingled  but  little  in  the  society  of  Wash- 
ington, and  always  secluded  herself  from  the  observation 
of  the  throng.     Her  health  was  frail  during  the  latter 


A   DINNER    AND    RECEPTION.  229 

j^ears  of  her  life  in  the  White  House,  and  she  became 
more  than  ever  a  recluse.  One  of  the  many  guests  of 
the  President  and  Mrs.  Monroe  durinor  the  last  winter 
of  their  stay  in  the  White  House  was  Lafayette,  who 
afterward  visited  them  at  their  residence  in  Loudon' 
county,  Virginia, 

In  a  recent  publication  there  is  a  copy  of  an  old  letter 
written  by  Mr.  Cooper,  in  which  he  thus  mentions  a 
dinner  and  a  reception  at  the  White  House  during  Mr. 
Monroe's  time. 

"  On  this  occasion  we  were  honored  with  the  presence 
of  Mrs.  Monroe  and  two  or  three  of  her  female  relatives. 
Crossing  the  hall  we  were  admitted  to  a  drawing-room,  in 
which  most  of  the  company  were  already  assembled.  The 
hour  was  six.  By  far  the  greater  part  of  the  guests  were 
men,  and  perhaps  two-thirds  were  members  of  Congress. 

"  There  was  great  gravity  of  mien  in  most  of  the  com- 
pany, and  neither  any  very  marked  exhibition,  nor  any 
positively  striking  want  of  grace  of  manner.  The  con- 
versation was  commonplace  and  a  little  sombre,  though 
two  or  three  men  of  the  world  got  around  the  ladies, 
where  the  battle  of  words  was  maintained  with  sufficient 
spirit.  To  me  the  entertainment  had  rather  a  cold  than 
a  formal  air.  When  dinner  was  announced,  the  oldest 
Senator  present  (there  were  two,  and  seniority  of  ser- 
vice is  meant)  took  Mrs.  Monroe  and  led  her  to  the 
table.  The  rest  of  the  party  followed  without  much 
order.  The  President  took  a  lady,  as  usual,  and  preceded 
the  rest  of  the  gruests.     The  dinino^-room  was  in  better 


230  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

taste  than  is  common  here,  being  quite  simple  and  but 
little  furnished.  The  table  was  large  and  rather  hand- 
some. The  service  was  in  china,  as  is  uniformly  the 
case,  plate  being  exceedingly  rare,  if  at  all  used.  There 
was,  however,  a  rich  plateau,  and  a  great  abundance  of 
the  smaller  articles  of  table-plate.  The  cloth,  napkins, 
etc.,  etc.,  were  fine  and  beautiful.  The  dinner  was 
served  In  the  French  style,  a  little  Americanized.  The 
dishes  were  handed  around,  though  some  of  the  guests, 
appearing  to  prefer  their  own  customs,  coolly  helped 
themselves  to  what  they  found  at  hand. 

"  Of  attendants  there  were  a  good  many.  They  were 
neatly  dressed,  out  of  livery,  and  sufficient.  To  con- 
clude, the  whole  entertainment  might  have  passed  for  a 
better  sort  of  European  dinner-party,  at  which  the  guests 
were  too  numerous  for  general  or  very  agreeable  dis- 
course, and  some  of  them  too  new  to  be  entirely  at  their 
ease.  Mrs.  Monroe  arose,  at  the  end  of  the  dessert,  and 
withdrew,  attended  by  two  or  diree  of  the  most  gallant 
of  the  company.  No  sooner  was  his  wife's  back  turned 
than  the  President  reseated  himself,  inviting-  his  gruests 
to  imitate  the  action.  After  allowing  his  guests  sufficient 
time  to  renew,  in  a  few  glasses,  the  recollections  of  sim- 
ilar enjoyments  of  their  own,  he  arose  himself,  giving  the 
hint  to  his  company  that  it  was  time  to  rejoin  the  ladies. 
In  the  drawing-room  coffee  was  served,  and  every  one 
left  the  house  before  nine." 

"On  the  succeeding  Wednesday,  Mrs.  Monroe  opened 
her  doors  to  all  the  world.     No  invitation  was  necessary, 


WHITE    HOUSE    ENTERTAINMENTS.  23 1 

it  being  the  usage  for  the  wife  of  the  President  to  receive 
company  once  a  fortnight  during  the  session,  without 
distinction  of  persons.  We  reached  the  White  House 
at  nine.  The  court  (or  rather  the  grounds)  was  filled 
with  carriages,  and  the  company  was  arriving  in  great 
numbers.  On  this  occasion,  two  or  three  additional 
drawing-rooms  were  opened,  though  the  frugality  of 
Congress  has  prevented  them  from  finishing  the  principal 
reception-room  of  the  building.  I  will  acknowledge  the 
same  sort  of  surprise  I  felt  at  the  Castle  Garden  fete,  at 
finding  the  assemblage  so  respectable  in  air,  dress  and 
deportment.  The  evening  at  the  White  House,  or 
drawing-room,  as  it  is  sometimes  pleasantly  called,  is,  in 
fact,  a  collection  of  all  classes  of  people  who  choose  to 
go  to  the  trouble  and  expense  of  appearing  in  dresses 
suited  to  an  ordinary  evening  party.  I  am  not  sure  that 
even  dress  is  much  regarded,  for  I  certainly  saw  a  good 
many  there  in  boots.  The  females  were  all  neatly  and 
properly  attired,  though  few  were  ornamented  with  jew- 
elry. Of  course,  the  poor  and  laboring  classes  of  the 
community  would  find  little  or  no  pleasure  in  such  a 
scene.  The  infamous,  if  known,  would  not  be  admitted,  for 
it  is  a  peculiar  consequence  of  the  high  tone  of  morals 
in  this  country,  that  grave  and  notorious  offenders  rarely 
presume  to  violate  the  public  feeling  by  invading  society. 
"  Squeezing  through  the  crowd,  we  achieved  a  passage 
to  a  part  of  the  room  where  Mrs.  Monroe  was  standing, 
surrounded  by  a  bevy  of  female  friends.  After  making 
our  bow  here,  we  sought  the  President.     The  latter  had 


232  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

posted  himself  at  the  top  of  the  room,  where  he  remained 
most  of  the  evening,  shaking  hands  with  all  who  ap- 
proached. Near  him  stood  all  the  secretaries,  and  a 
oreat  number  of  the  most  distinoruished  men  of  the  na- 
tion.  Individuals  of  importance  from  all  parts  of  the 
Union  were  also  here,  and  were  employed  in  the  manner 
usual  to  such  scenes.  Besides  these,  one  meets  here  a 
great  variety  of  people  in  other  conditions  of  life.  I  have 
known  a  cartman  to  leave  his  horse  in  the  street,  and  go 
into  the  reception-room  to  shake  hands  with  the  Presi- 
dent. He  offended  the  good  taste  of  all  present,  be- 
cause it  was  not  thought  decent  that  a  laborer  should 
come  in  a  dirty  dress  on  such  an  occasion  ;  but  while  he 
made  a  trifling  mistake  in  this  particular,  he  proved  how 
well  he  understood  the  difference  between  orovernment 
and  society.  He  knew  the  levee  was  a  sort  of  homage  paid 
to  political  equality  in  the  person  of  the  First  Magistrate, 
but  he  would  not  have  presumed  to  enter  the  house  of  the 
same  person  as  a  private  individual  without  being  invited, 
or  without  a  reasonable  excuse  in  the  way  of  business." 
Maria  Monroe,  the  youngest  daughter  of  the  President, 
was  married  March,  1820,  in  the  East  Room,  to  her  cousin, 
Samuel  L.  Gouverneur,  of  New  York,  after  what  a  letter 
writer  of  that  day  describes  as  "the  New  York  style," 
This  was  a  wedding  where  only  the  attendants,  the  re- 
lations, and  a  few  old  friends  of  the  bride  and  groom 
witnessed  the  ceremony.  Then  the  bridesmaids  were 
dismissed  until  a  week  from  that  day,  when  the  bride 
received  visitors,     A  reception  was  given  then  at  which 


A   WHITE    HOUSE    MARRIAGE.  233 

Mrs.  Gouverneur  presided  in  the  place  of  her  mother, 
and  was  formally  introduced  to  all  the  guests  present. 
The  President  and  Mrs.  Monroe  mingled  with  the  crowd, 
and  left  the  bridal  couple  to  do  the  duties  of  host  and 
hostess.  The  bridal  festivities  were  to  include  crencral 
receptions,  and  Commodore  and  Mrs.  Decatur  gave  the 
young  couple  a  largely  attended  ball  shortly  after  the 
White  House  reception.  Cards  had  been  issued  by 
Commodore  Porter  for  an  entertainment  in  their  honor, 
when  the  news  of  the  death  of  Commodore  Decatur  put 
an  end  to  all  gayety  in  Washington.  The  couple  soon 
after  took  up  their  residence  in  New  York.  The  eldest 
daughter  was  living  at  this  time  in  Richmond,  Virginia. 

After  Mr.  Monroe  retired  from  office,  he  returned  to 
his  home  in  Loudon  county,  and  engaged  with  Messrs. 
Jefferson  and  Madison  in  establishing  the  University  of 
Virginia.  This  occupation  formed  a  pleasant  pastime 
lo  him,  and  was  of  lasting  benefit  to  his  beloved  State. 
Afterward  he  was  chosen  President  of  the  Virginia  Con- 
vention to  amend  the  Constitution  of  his  native  State. 
Meanwhile  Mrs.  Monroe  found  womanly  employment 
for  hands  and  heart  in  caring  for  those  dependent  upon 
her  bounty,  and  entertaining  the  various  throngs  who 
delighted  to  do  honor  to  the  three  ex-Presidents  of  the 
United  States,  and  sons  of  the  old  commonwealth. 

Mrs.  Monroe  was  now  alone  and  becominor  aored,  and 
was  pleasing  herself  with  the  delusion  that  after  so 
many  years  of  public  life,  her  husband  would  spend  the 
evening  of  his  days  with  her,  around   the  fireside.     But 


234  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 

he  felt  as  if  he  could  never  cease  to  serve  Virginia. 
Long  after  his  duty  to  his  country  had  been  performed 
and  she  had  dismissed  him  with  plaudits  and  laurel 
wreaths,  he  struggled  under  accumulated  infirmities  and 
trials,  and  to  the  last  hearkened  to  the  voice  of  his 
State.  The  last  public  position  he  held  was  a  magis- 
tracy in  the  county  of  Loudon,  where  he  resided,  and 
was  as  attentive  and  devoted  to  the  performance  of 
every  duty  as  when  holding  the  highest  office  in  the  gift 
of  the  people. 

Mrs.  Monroe  died  suddenly  in  1830,  and  thus  was 
ended  the  old  home-life.  Oak  Hill  was  closed,  and  the 
crushed  husband  soucjht  refugee  from  loneliness  in  the 
home  of  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Gouverneur,  in  New  York, 
whose  devoted  affection  soothed  his  pathway  to  the  grave. 

The  venerable  Dr.  Francis  tells  us  that  he  often  met 
Mr.  Monroe  walking  out  when  the  weather  was  fine, 
and  that  on  these  occasions  he  was  the  object  of  the 
most  affectionate  attentions.  He  has  often  met  him 
making  purchases  for  the  family,  at  the  Centre  Market, 
where  all  the  stallmen  knew  and  honored  him. 

He  was  tall  and  spare,  very  modest  In  his  bearing, 
dignified  and  gentlemanly.  In  his  address,  he  was  hes- 
itating and  diffident,  and  polite  to  the  poorest  and  hum- 
blest as  to  any.  He  was  one  of  the  most  Industrious 
of  men,  a  hard  student,  and  his  cares  left  their  marks  on 
his  face.  The  w'ound  he  received  at  Trenton  was  felt 
lor  many  years  afterward — indeed,  throughout  his  life 
he  occasionally  suffered  from  it. 


DEATH    OF    MR.    MONROE.  235 

Less  than  a  year  after  Mrs.  Monroe's  death  her  hus- 
band was  preparing  to  join  her.  On  the  4th  of  July, 
X831,  the  anniversary  of  American  Independence,  just 
five  years  after  his  predecessors  had  quitted  this  scene 
of  their  labor  and  their  triumph,  he,  too,  joined  them. 

His  funeral  was  a  very  imposing  one — the  largest 
that  at  that  time  had  ever  been  seen  in  New  York. 
The  military  under  Gen.  Jacob  Morton,  Grand  Marshal, 
filled  Broadway  from  Prince  to  Broad  Street,  through 
which  it  passed  to  the  cemetery.  The  day  was  fine, 
and  the  signs  of  mourning  were  generally  adopted  by 
the  citizens  of  New  York. 

There  is  an  old  cemetery  on  the  north  side  of  Second 
street,  in  this  city  (New  York),  between  First  and 
Second  Avenues,  separated  from  the  sidewalk  by  a  tall 
iron  fence,  placed  upon  a  granite  foundation. 

The  shrubbery  is  always  clean  and  vigorous ;  the 
grass  is  always  the  greenest,  and  the  walks  are  scrupu- 
lously neat.  There  are  many  tasteful  and  appropriate 
monuments  to  the  dead  that  sleep  within  this  hallowed 
inclosure  ;  but  to  the  memory  of  the  most  famous  of  its 
dumb  inhabitants  there  was  no  marble  shaft,  no  obelisk, 
not  even  a  head-stone  erected.  But  upon  a  simple  slab 
of  marble  that  lies  flat,  some  two  feet  square,  upon  the 
earth,  and  is  almost  covered  by  grass,  is  the  following 
inscription : 

JAMES  MONROE, 

ROBERT  TILLOTSON, 

Vault  No.  147. 


2;6  ELIZABETH    K.    MONROE. 


There  is  nothing  to  indicate  that  the  James  Monroe 
mentioned  is  the  Monroe  who  was  in  the  battle  of  White 
Plains,  and  received  a  ball  in  the  shoulder  at  the  attack 
on  Trenton,  who  fought  by  the  side  of  Lafayette  at 
Brandywine,  who  was  Minister  to  France  in  i  794,  and 
afterward  to  England ;  who  was  Secretary  of  State  in 
181 1,  and  for  two  full  terms  President  of  these  United 
States.  Yet  such  is  the  fact,  and  that  weather-stained 
slab  of  marble,  two  feet  square,  covered  for  many  years 
the  grave  of  Ex-President  Monroe. 

Many  years  afterward,  by  order  of  the  Virginia  Legis- 
lature, the  remains  of  Ex-President  Monroe  were  re- 
moved to  Richmond,  and  a  monument  befittinor  his  fame 
was  erected  over  his  grave. 

The  property  of  Oak  Hill  is  now  owned  by  Mr. 
Fairfax,  and  with  it  one  thousand  acres  of  land.  Three 
hundred  acres  are  comprised  in  the  McGowan  estate. 

The  second  daughter  of  President  Monroe,  Mrs. 
Maria  Gouverneur,  died  in  1850  at  Oak  Hill,  where  she 
was  buried  by  the  side  of  her  mother.  The  eldest 
daughter  died  in  Paris,  and  was  buried  in  Pere  la 
Chaise.  There  are  now  livingr  but  few  descendants  of 
Mrs.  Monroe. 

At  this  short  remove  from  her  day,  not  many  inci- 
dents relating  to  her  career  are  extant.  She  lived  as 
public  a  life  as  did  Mrs.  John  Adams,  and  was  far 
better  acquainted  with  society  in  this  country  and 
Europe  than  several  of  the  ladies  who  preceded  her  in 
the  semi-official  position    she    filled,  but  her  ill   health 


A    LIFE    DEVOTED    TO    FAMILY.  237 

and  her  temperament  unfitted  her  for  familiarity  with  the 
people,  and  kept  her  from  being-  popular  in  the  sense 
that  Mrs.  Madison  was.  The  difference  between  these  two 
women  was  that  the  latter  was  fond  of  company,  en- 
joyed life  and  had  a  healthy,  hearty  Interest  in  the 
events  transpiring  about  her.  The  other  lived  In  re- 
tirement as  far  as  possible,  and  the  record  of  so  quiet 
an  existence  is  not  as  familiar  to  the  people  of  this 
country  as  is  that  of  those  of  her  contemporaries  who 
occupied  the  high  place  she  filled. 

Society  was  differently  organized  In  her  time  than  it 
Is  now.  It  Is  difficult  to  realize  that  newspaper  corre- 
spondents were  the  exception  and  not  the  rule,  and  that 
public  attention  was  rarely  directed  to  ladies  ;  whereas 
now  it  Is  impossible  for  women  in  semi-official  life  to 
keep  themselves  out  of  the  multitudinous  prints  of  the 
day,  object  as  they  may. 


VI. 

LOUISA     CATHERINE     ADAMS. 

Mrs.  Adams  was  the  sixth  in  the  succession  of  occu« 
pants  of  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  with  her  closed 
the  list  of  the  ladies  of  the  Revolution.  A  new  genera- 
tion had  sprung  up  in  the  forty-nine  years  of  Independ- 
ence, and  after  her  retirement,  younger  aspirants  claimed 
the  honors.  Born  in  the  city  of  London  on  the  12th  of 
February,  1775,  she  received  advantages  superior  to 
those  enjoyed  by  most  of  the  ladies  of  America.  Hef 
father,  Mr.  Johnson,  of  Maryland,  although  living  at  th-.: 
outbreak  of  the  war,  in  England,  was  ever  a  patriotiij 
American,  and  soon  after  hostilities  commenced,  re 
moved  with  his  family  to  Nantes,  in  France.  "There  he 
received  from  the  Federal  Congress  an  appointment  as 
Commissioner  to  examine  the  accounts  of  all  the  Amer- 
ican functionaries  then  entrusted  with  the  public  money 
of  the  United  States,  in  Europe ;  in  the  exercise  of  the 
duties  of  which  he  continued  until  the  peace  of  1783. 
Our  National  Independence  having  then  been  recog- 
nized, he  returned  to  London,  where  he  continued  to 
reside,  and  where  he  acted  as  consular  agent  for  the 
United  States,  until  his  final  return  in  1797,  to  his  native 
soil." 

It  was  fortunate  for  Mrs.  Adams  that  her  husband 

was  a  strong,  intellectual  nature  ;  he  both  satisfied  and 

(238) 


tran'M  »,i.rn<m        : 


UHAJUdO^       6a/%£/2-AyVL£.      >yCcL0JYlAA 


^y 


MARRIAGE    IN    I  797-  239 

sustained  her,  and  rendered  her  sojourn  on  earth  con- 
tented and  agreeable.  In  her  father's  house  in  London 
he  first  saw  her,  in  1794,  and  on  the  26th  of  July,  1797, 
they  were  married  at  the  Church  of  All-Hallows.  Soon 
afterward  his  father  became  President,  and  he  was 
transferred  to  Berlin,  where  he  repaired  with  his  wife  as 
a  bride,  to  play  her  part  in  the  higher  circles  of  social 
and  political  life.  It  need  scarcely  be  added  that  she 
proved  perfectly  competent  to  this ;  and  that  during 
four  years,  which  comprised  the  period  of  her  stay  at 
that  court,  notwithstanding  almost  continual  ill-health, 
she  succeeded  in  makino-  friends  and  conciliatinof  a  de- 
gree  of  good-will,  the  recollection  of  which  is,  even  at 
this  distance  of  time,  believed  to  be  among  the  most 
ag-reeable  of  the  associations  with  her  varied  life.  In 
1 80 1,  after  the  birth  of  her  eldest  child,  she  embarked 
with  Mr.  Adams  on  his  return  to  the  United  States. 
Not  to  Maryland,  the  home  of  her  childhood,  but,  a 
stranger  to  their  habits  and  manners,  she  went  among 
the  New  England  people,  and  settled  with  her  husband 
in  Boston.  Here  she  determined  to  be  satisfied  and 
live  with  a  people  whom  in  feeling  she  was  not  unlike, 
but  scarcely  was  she  beginning  to  feel  at  home  when 
Mr.  Adams  was  elected  Senator,  and  she  removed  with 
him  to  Washington.  A  sister  was  already  established 
there,  and  she  met  once  more  the  members  of  her  own 
family,  where  to  her  the  winter  months  passed  pleas- 
antly away.  Each  summer  she  returned  to  Boston,  and 
thus  alternatinor  between  there  and  Washington  in  win- 


240  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

ter,  she  passed  the  eight  years  of  Jefferson's  term.  To 
many,  the  capital  was  an  out-of-the  way  place,  and  not  al- 
ways pleasant  to  Congressmen's  wives,  some  of  whom  left 
the  gayeties  of  larger  cities  to  be  detained  six  or  eight 
months;  but  Mrs.  Adams  was  peculiarly  fortunate  in  her 
position,  having  around  her  near  and  dear  relations  from 
whom  she  had  been  separated  many  years.  It  became 
home  to  her,  and  to  a  Southerner,  the  climate  was  more 
congenial  than  the  region  of  her  husband's  birthplace. 

Mr.  Adams,  called  by  President  Madison,  to  embark 
for  Russia  as  our  first  accredited  minister,  Mrs.  Adams 
determined  to  cro,  even  at  the  cost  of  leavino-  her  two 
eldest  children  with  their  grandparents,  and  taking  with 
her  a  third,  not  yet  two  years  old.  They  sailed  from 
Boston  early  in  August,  and  after  a  long  and  somewhat 
hazardous  passage  arrived  in  St.  Petersburg  toward  the 
close  of  October, 

What  voyages  those  must  have  been,  when  nearly 
three  months  were  consumed  in  getting  from  one  country 
to  another;  when  weary  weeks  of  summer  merged  into 
winter  before  the  barrier  between  the  old  and  the  new 
world  could  be  passed.  Yet  how  often  had  members 
of  that  family  braved  dangers  unknown  to  perform  some 
duty  in  the  other  world.  Far  back  into  the  past,  their 
Puritan  ancestors  had  found  a  refucre  on  "wild  New 
England's  shore,"  and  in  that  interval,  the  waters  of  the 
sea  had  wafted  the  children  of  the  third  and  fourth  gen- 
erations over  its  crested  waves,  to  ask  for  the  heritage 
their  forefathers  claimed — liberty  of  conscience,  and 
freedom  to  worship  God. 


RESIDENCE    IN    RUSSIA.  24 1 

Years  before,  a  brave,  strong  woman  had,  \vit!i 
streaming  eyes,  seen  the  form  of  her  eldest  boy  start 
over  the  same  track  he  was  now  treading,  and  she  had 
gone  back  to  her  lonely  home  to  suffer.  Now,  through 
its  well-known  and  treacherous  path,  that  son,  grown  to 
man's  estate,  with  children  of  his  own  left  behind,  wends 
his  tedious  way,  to  bear  to  the  halls  of  remotest  nations 
the  wishes  and  intentions  of  his  young  country. 

His  wife,  preferring  an  uncertain  exile  in  a  foreign 
country  to  a  separation  from  her  husband,  suffered  ex- 
tremest  anguish  as  she  thought  of  her  weeping  children, 
for  the  first  time  separated  from  her.  She  felt  the  great 
distance  and  doubtful  prospects  of  hearing  from  them, 
not  less  keenly  than  she  did  the  length  of  time  which 
might  elapse  before  she  again  would  tread  the  shores  of 
her  native  land.  And  the  bleak  climate  to  which  shu 
was  hastening  in  nowise  tended  to  make  her  cheerful , 
nor  did  the  fact  that  Mr.  Adams  was  the  first  Minister, 
allay  her  anxious  sadness.  Never,  perhaps,  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  world,  were  such  scenes  being  enacted  as 
now-.  Europe  was  literally  a  battle-field,  and  Napoleon, 
the  scourge  of  the  continent,  was  ruling,  by  the  mighty 
force  of  his  g^reat  skill,  the  destinies  of  the  Old  World. 
Shut  up  in  St.  Petersburg,  Mrs.  Adams  gathered  ru- 
mors of  the  progress  of  that  "  man  of  destiny,"  and 
listened  for  his  knock  even  at  the  gates  of  the  imperial 
capital. 

During  the  six  years  of  her  stay  in  Russia,  what  won- 
drous things  transpired!     What  intense  interest  marked 
16 


242  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

the  era,  we,  of  comparative  quiet,  can  scarcely  conceive. 
Death  took  from  her  an  infant,  born  whilst  there,  and 
the  twofold  affliction  of  public  and  private  trouble 
weighed  upon  her. 

"  Mr.  Adams,"  said  his  son,  "  lived  there  poor,  studious, 
ambitious  and  secluded,  on  ihe  narrow  basis  of  the  parch- 
ment of  his  commission,  respected  for  learning  and  tal- 
ents, but  little  given  to  the  costly  entertainments  of  an 
opulent  and  ostentatious  court  circle.  But  the  extraor- 
dinary mission  could  afford  and  was  entitled  to  more 
expensive  circulation  in  the  splendid  palaces  of  a  mag- 
nificent city,  inhabited  by  the  owners  of  thousands  of 
serfs,  and  some  of  them  of  Ural  Mountains  containing 
mines  of  gold.  Living  frugally,  withdrawn  from  all  but 
indispensable  parade,  Mr.  Adams  laid  the  basis  of  a 
modest  competency  for  his  return  to  America,  whose 
official  acquisition  American,  republican  parsimony  in- 
duces, if  not  justifies." 

The  war  between  England  and  America  broke  out  in 
the  meantime,  and  communication  was  almost  entirely 
cutoff.  British  ships  cruised  about  our  ports  to  capture 
peaceful  vessels,  and  thundered  their  cannon  at  the  cap- 
ital of  the  country.  While  Mrs.  Adams  grew  tired  and 
weary  of  her  cheerless  abode  in  that  far,  northern  climate, 
British  troops  were  busy  devastating  the  country  round 
about  her  old  home,  and  burninof  the  mansion  which  later 
in  life  she  was  to  occupy.  Completely  cut  off  from  all 
that  made  life  dear,  Mr.  Adams  hoped  for  some  oppor- 
tunity to  be  recalled,  and  restore   his  divided  family  to 


AMERICAN   ini)i:pl:ni)Knck  at  stake.  243 

each  other.  Emperor  Alexander  unconsciously  prepared 
the  way  for  their  return  by  proposing  to  be  mediator  for 
England  and  the  United  States.  In  consequence  of  this 
offer,  the  commissioners  repaired  to  St.  Petersburg,  ac- 
companied by  Mr.  Payne  Todd,  the  stepson  of  President 
Madison,  whose  simple  position  in  America  was  exag- 
gerated by  European  mistake  to  princely  position. 
Their  coming  was  a  source  of  pleasure  to  Mrs.  Adams, 
whose  time  had  been  spent  so  quiedy,  and  it  was  her 
hope  to  return  with  them ;  but  while  the  commissioners 
enjoyed  themselves  with  the  sights  of  the  Russian  capital, 
g^reat  changes  were  taking  place  on  the  continent,  and 
lliey  were  unaware  how  radical  they  were.  The  return 
ship  to  the  United  States  brought  the  news  to  Boston 
that  Napoleon  was  banished  to  Elba,  Louis  the  XVIII. 
propped  on  the  throne  of  his  ancestors  by  foreign 
armies,  and  England  was  at  the  zenith  of  her  power  and 
greatness.  Never  were  the  prospects  of  republican 
America  so  low  since  its  independence,  and  the  hearts  of 
those  patriots  trembled  when  they  thought  of  the  future. 
The  Russian  mediation  failed,  but  the  commissioners 
afterward  met  at  Ghent,  where  delays  succeeded  each 
other  until  on  Christmas  eve,  Saturday,  24th  December, 
1814,  the  treaty  was  signed.  It  was  the  desire  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Adams  to  have  returned  home  this  winter,  but 
the  failure  of  the  commissioners  at  St.  Petersburg  neces- 
sitated  the  presence  of  Mr.  Adams  at  Ghent,  and  it  was 
thought  best  she  should  remain  in  Russia.  The  state  of  Eu- 
rope, restless  and  revolutionary,  was  considered  another 


244  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

argument  in  favor  of  her  remaining,  and  consequently 
Mr,  Adams  set  out  without  her.  Alone  in  that  place 
where  she  had  lived  five  years,  where  she  had  buried  one 
child,  and  where  she  hoped  her  husband  would  soon  re- 
join her,  she  passed  the  sixth  winter,  and  wished  only 
for  the  spring  to  come  to  release  herself  and  son  from 
their  exile.  How  her  heart  must  have  yearned,  in  days 
short  only  because  the  darkness  was  so  long,  for  her 
little  ones  over  the  wide  Atlantic,  and  with  what  zeal 
must  she  have  prepared  for  that  homeward-bound  trip, 
so  near  in  anticipation,  yet  in  reality  so  far  off.  But  he>;: 
trial  was  in  proportion  to  her  strength,  and  if  she  did  ncit 
go  home,  her  children  came  to  her  afterward.*  Spring 
at  last  came,  on  the  almanac  at  least,  if  not  in  the  gor- 
geous beauty  it  was  wont  to  appear  in  her  far-off  south- 
ern home,  and  she  was  advised  to  travel  by  land  to  rejoin 
her  husband  at  Paris,  whither  he  had  gone  from  Ghent. 
The  difficulties  and  dangers  of  a  land  route  through  the 
late  theatre  of  a  furious  war,  had  no  influence  to  bear 
upon  her  determined  Idea  to  go,  and  braving  solitary 
journeys,  rogues,  and  dangers  of  every  conceivable  kind, 
set  out  with  her  child  to  travel  to  France.  Hers  must 
have  been  an  indomitable  spirit,  else  the  lonely  days  of 
constant  travel  through  villages  and  wild,  uncultivated 
countries,  where  every  inanimate   thing  bore  traces  of 

'•  *  Mrs.  Adams  had  four  children,  three  sons  and  a  daughter.  I.  George  Wash, 
ington  Adams,  born  in  Berlin,  I2th  April,  i8oi.  2.  John  Adams,  born  in  Boston, 
4th  July,  1S03.  3.  Charles  Francis  Adams,  born  in  Boston,  August  l8th,  1807.  4. 
Louisa  Catherine  Adams,  born  in  St.  Petersburg,  August  12th,  181 1,  and  died  there 
the  next  year. 


FASTENED    IX    A    SNOW-DRIFT.  245 

crlm-visaofed  war,  would  have  convinced  her  of  the  risk 
she  was  running.  With  the  passports  of  the  Russian 
government,  and  the  strong  recommendation  of  being 
the  American  minister's  wife,  she  bade  adieu  to  all  ap- 
prehensions, and  risked  all  to  only  get  nearer  to  home 
and  children. 

Her  son,  in  speaking  of  this  time,  said :  "  In  such 
circumstances,  to  be  fastened  in  a  snow-drift  with  night 
coming  on,  and  to  be  forced  to  rouse  the  peasants  of  the 
surrounding  country  to  dig  them  out,  which  happened  in 
Courland,  was  no  slicjlit  matter.  But  it  was  of  little  sio-- 
nificance  compared  to  the  complicated  anxieties  incident 
to  the  listening,  at  every  stopping-place,  to  the  tales  of 
jobbery  and  murder  just  committed  on  the  proposed 
loute,  so  perpetually  repeated  at  that  time  to  the  travel- 
ler; and  to  the  warnings  given  by  apparently  friendly 
persons  of  the  character  of  her  own  servants,  corrobo- 
rated by  the  loss  of  several  articles  of  value,  and,  most 
<if  all,  to  the  observation  of  the  restless  contention  be- 
tween jarring  political  passions  under  which  the  whole 
.continent  of  Europe  was  heaving  until  it  burst  forth  at 
the  return  of  Napoleon  from  Elba.  Hardly  a  day  passed 
that  did  not  require  of  Mrs.  Adams  some  presence  of 
mind  to  avoid  becoming  implicated  in  the  consequences 
of  party  fury.  For  even  the  slight  symbol  of  a  Polish 
cap  on  the  head  of  her  servant  came  near  making  food 
for  popular  quarrel." 

On  the  way  she  heard  of  Napoleon's  return  from 
Elba,  and  knew  that  his  coming  would  be  disputed  not 


246  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

only  by  the  Bourbons  in  power,  but  that  it  would  be  the 
signal  for  a  general  uprising  throughout  Europe.  As 
she  journeyed  along  from  place  to  place,  she  witnessed 
the  excitement  that  followed  the  news,  and  saw,  with 
much  concern,  the  preparations  for  hostile  demonstra- 
tions. As  she  neared  the  border  the  acdvity  of  the  mil- 
itary was  observable  on  all  sides.  Napoleon  was  making 
by  forced  marches  the  seven  hundred  miles  that  lay  be- 
tween the  seaport  at  which  he  landed  and  Paris,  and 
at  every  point  he  was  receiving  the  accessions  to  his 
numbers  that  increased  until  he  reached  Paris  at  the 
head  of  an  army.  The  immense  influence  which  his 
past  successes  had  over  the  French  people  was  thus  ex- 
hibited, and  he  took  possession  of  the  capital  amid  the 
huzzas  of  the  populace  and  to  their  great  delight.  It 
was  at  such  a  time  that  Mrs.  Adams  was  approaching 
the  city,  and  it  may  well  be  imagined  that  her  every 
thought  was  in  the  direction  of  her  own  and  her  chil- 
dren's safety.  Later,  when  the  events  were  over,  and 
she  was  at  liberty  to  recall  them,  she  dwelt  with  interest 
upon  the  dangers  confronted  and  the  anxieties  she  had 
endured,  nor  did  she  express  regret  that  her  experiences 
had  been  what  they  were.  The  scenes  she  witnessed 
were  commanding  the  consideration  of  the  world,  and 
romance  in  her  wildest  dreams  had  not  conceived  of  any- 
thing more  thrilling  than  the  enterprise  in  which  Napo- 
leon had  embarked.  It  was  a  matter  that  concerned 
all  Europe,  and  the  moment  he  set  foot  upon  French 
soil,  the  crown-heads  of  the  old  world  began  to  prepare 


MEETS    HER    HUSBAND    IN    PARIS.  247 

for  a  conHict  that  was  to  end  his  career,  or  change  the 
fate  of  nations. 

Mrs.  Adams  found,  as  she  neared  Paris,  the  dangers 
to  which  she  was  exposed,  and  dismissing  her  servants, 
who  were  afraid  to  go  farther,  hired  others  and  con- 
tinued her  approach  to  her  husband.  But  every  cross- 
road and  forest  path  was  filled  with  soldiers  wild  with 
enthusiasm,  rushing  forward  to  join  their  great  chief,  and 
at  one  time  she  found  herself  surrounded  by  them.  This 
was  a  very  awkward  position,  as  the  troops  seemed  dis- 
posed to  require  from  all  around  them  the  most  une- 
quivocal declaration  of  political  faith.  Mrs.  Adams 
appealed  to  the  commander  of  the  detachment,  and  by 
his  advice  she  was  enabled  to  fall  back,  although  not 
without  the  exercise  of  considerable  prudence,  until  th« 
last  of  the  men  had  passed,  when  she  diverged  into 
another  road,  and  by  making  a  considerable  circuit, 
avoided  any  further  meeting. 

Having  proved,  in  this  manner,  that  calmness  and 
presence  of  mind  render  many  things  perfectly  prac- 
ticable which  imagination  at  first  invests  with  insuper- 
able difficulties,  she  arrived  in  Paris  safe  and  well, 
there  to  be  greeted  by  her  husband,  on  die  evening 
of  the  2 1st  of  March,  1815,  immediately  after  that  of 
the  memorable  arrival  of  Napoleon  and  the  flight  of  the 
Bourbons. 

The  advantages  thus  thrown  in  the  way  of  an 
American  woman  were  justly  appreciated  by  Mrs. 
Adams,  and  she,  free  from  prejudice,  studiea  the  strange 


248  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

perversities  of  fortune.  The  events  of  the  hundred 
days  were  enough  to  crowd  the  memory  for  a  life-time. 
They  fill  us  at  this  day,  as  we  ponder  over  them,  with 
awe  and  amazement.  All  was  activity  and  eagerness, 
all  bustle  and  confusion.  The  armies  were  reviewing  in 
the  square  of  the  Place  Carousel,  and  the  inspiriting 
notes  of  martial  music  added  enthusiasm  to  the  grand- 
ness  of  the  time  and  place. 

But  the  arrival  of  her  children  in  England,  from 
whom  she  had  been  separated  since  the  autumn  of  1809, 
nearly  six  years,  was  of  more  interest  to  her  than  the 
events  happening  around  her.  On  the  25th  of  May, 
181 5,  Mr.  Adams  went  to  London  with  his  family, 
and  soon  afterward  learned  that  he  was  appointed 
A[inister  to  the  Court  of  St.  James.  The  impression 
made  upon  the  most  eminent  circles  during  his  resi- 
dence in  London  has  been  retained  up  to  the  present 
time.  It  has  been  said  of  him  that  "  his  simple  habits, 
his  plain  appearance,  his  untiring  industry,  his  richly 
stored  mind,  his  unbending  integrity,  his  general  inte^- 
course  and  correspondence  with  foreign  courts  and 
diplomatists  of  the  greatest  distinction,  all  tended  to 
elevate,  in  a  high  degree,  the  American  character  in  the 
estimation  of  European  nations." 

Mrs.  Adams  had  advantages  in  London  which 
scarcely  any  American  woman  has  ever  had  since ;  true, 
she  had  not  wealth  to  make  a  great  display,  but  her 
home  was  one  of  pleasant  comfort,  and  enjoying  as  she 
did   the  society  of  one  of  the  most  intelligent  of  men, 


TOIIN    QUINCY    ADAMS.  249 

and  of  the  best  informed  circle  in  the  great  capital, 
she  had  signal  opportunities  for  cultivation.  Charles 
King,  in  his  eulogy  on  John  Ouincy  Adams,  speaks 
thus:  "It  was  while  Mr.  Adams  was  Minister  of  the 
United  States  in  London,  that  it  was  my  personal  good 
fortune  to  be  admitted  to  his  intimacy  and  friendship. 
Being  then  in  London  on  private  business,  and  having 
some  previous  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Adams,  I  found 
in  his  house  an  ever  kind  welcome,  and  in  his  inter- 
course and  conversation  unfailing  attraction  and  im- 
provement. Under  an  exterior  of,  at  times,  almost  re- 
pulsive coldness,  dwelt  a  heart  as  warm,  sympathies  as 
quick,  and  affections  as  overflowing,  as  ever  animated 
any  bosom.  His  tastes,  too,  were  all  refined.  Litera- 
t  ire  and  art  w^ere  familiar  and  dear  to  him,  and  hence 
ii  was  that  his  society  was  at  once  so  agreeable  and  so 
improving.  At  his  hospitable  board,  I  have  listened 
to  disquisitions  from  his  lips  on  poetry,  especially  the 
dramas  of  Shakespeare,  music,  painting,  sculpture — of 
rure  excellence  and  untiring  interest.  The  extent  of 
his  knowledge,  indeed,  and  its  accuracy,  in  all  branches, 
were  not  less  remarkable  than  the  complete  command 
which  he  appeared  to  possess  over  all  his  varied  stores 
of  learning  and  information." 

Mr.    Monroe    succeeded   Mr.   Madison  in   the  Presi 
dential   chair  in  1817,  and  immediately  appointed   Mr. 
Adams  his  Secretary  of  State.     On  receiving  notice  of 
his  appointment  to  this  responsible   office,   Mr.  Adams 
with   his   family  embarked   for   the    United    States,    on 


250  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

board  the  packet-ship  "  Washington,"  and  landed  in  New 
York  on  the  6th  of  August,  181 7.  A  few  days  after  his 
arrival,  a  public  dinner  was  given  him  in  Tammany  Hall, 
New  York.  The  room  was  elegantly  decorated.  In 
the  centre  was  a  handsome  circle  of  oak  leaves,  roses, 
and  flags — the  whole  representing,  with  much  effect,  our 
happy  union — and  from  the  centre  of  which,  as  from  her 
native  woods,  appeared  our  eagle,  bearing  in  her  beak 
this  impressive  scroll ; 

"  Columbia,  great  Republic,  thou  art  blest, 
While  Empires  droop,  and  monarclis  sink  to  rest." 

Soon  afterward,  Mr.  Adams  and  family  went  to 
Boston  to  visit  his  father's  family,  where  he  was  the 
recipient  of  another  public  dinner :  the  last  meeting 
with  his  mother  on  earth,  it  was  one  which  he  never 
forgot.  It  was  gratifying  to  her  sensitive  nature  to  see 
him  thus  rising  from  one  elevated  position  to  another, 
and  it  soothed  her  aged  heart  beyond  any  power  of 
expression.  Many  years  of  his  life  had  been  spent  far 
away  from  her,  and  his  absences  were  long  and 
unbroken.  She  had  always  written  regularly  to  him, 
and  by  example  and  precept  endeavored  to  instil  into 
his  nature  some  portion  of  her  own  aspirations.  When 
his  talents  had  won  for  him  this  last  position,  she 
bowed  her  head  and  thanked  God.  Perhaps  her  spirit 
recognized  his  still  higher  promotion,  and  the  natural 
conclusion,  arrived  at  from  former  precedents,  that  by 
gradual  ascent  he  would  reach  the  place  his  father  oc- 


THE    ERA   OF    GOOD    FEELING.  25 1 

cupied,  occurred  to  her.  When  she  died  at  her  home 
in  Quincy,  he  was  in  Washington,  busy  with  the  manifold 
duties  of  his  place,  whither  he  had  gone  to  reside  per- 
manently, in  September,  1817. 

The  performance  of  the  duties  of  the  State  Depart- 
ment necessarily  required  a  residence  at  Washington, 
and  the  manner  in  which  Mr.  Adams  thought  proper  to 
devote  himself  to  them,  devolved  upon  his  lady  the  en- 
tire task  of  makinof  his  house  an  agreeable  resort  to  the 
multitudes  of  visitors  who  crowd  to  the  capital  on 
errands  of  business,  or  curiosity,  or  pleasure,  from  the 
various  sections  of  the  United  States  during  the  winter 
season.  A  large  diplomatic  corps  from  foreign  coun- 
tries, who  feel  themselves  in  more  immediate  relations 
with  the  Secretary  of  State,  and  a  distinguished  set  of 
public  men,  not  then  divided  by  party  lines  in  the  man- 
ner which  usually  prevails,  rendered  the  society  of  that 
time,  and  Mrs.  Adams'  house  where  it  most  often  con- 
gregated, among  the  most  agreeable  recorded  in  the 
social  history  of  the  capital. 

Much  as  it  has  been  ridiculed  since,  the  "era  of  good 
feeling"  had  some  characteristics  peculiar  to  itself.  For 
an  instant,  sectional  animosities  relented,  the  tone  of 
personal  denunciation  and  angry  crimination,  too  gen- 
erally prevailing  in  extremes,  yielded;  and  even  where 
the  jealous  rivalry  for  political  honors  still  predominated 
in  the  hearts  of  men,  the  easy  polish  of  general  society 
removed  from  casual  spectators  any  sense  of  its  rough- 
ness, or  inconvenience  from  its  impetuosity.     Washing- 


252  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

ton  may  have  presented  more  brilliant  spectacles  since, 
but  the  rancor  of  party  spirit  has  ever  mingled  its  bale- 
ful force  too  strongly  not  to  be  perceptible  in  the  per- 
sonal relations  which  have  existed  between  the  most 
distinguished  of  our  political  men. 

The  following  letter,  not  before  published,  from  Mrs. 
Adams  to  her  father-in-law  will  be  read  with  interest. 
She  corresponded  regularly  during  her  life  in  Washing- 
ton, with  him,  until  his  death,  in  1826: 

To  John  Adams. 

"  Washington,  \()th  April,  1819. 

"Yes!  my  dear  sir,  was  my  mind  sufficiently  strong 
or  capacious  to  understand,  or  even  to  comprehend  the 
study  of  ancient  and  modern  philosophy,  I  am  certain  I 
should  derive  very  great  advantage  from  that  study ; 
but  you  certainly  forgot  when  you  recommended  it,  that 
you  were  addressing  the  weaker  sex,  to  whom  stoicism 
would  be  both  unamiable  and  unnatural,  and  who  would 
be  very  liable  in  avoiding  Scylla,  to  strike  upon  Charyb- 
dis,  or  to  speak  without  metaphor,  to  rush  into  sceptic- 
ism. Have  you  perceived  anything  like  fatalism  in  my 
letters  ?  I  am  unconscious  of  it,  though  I  fear  there 
may  sometimes  be  a  little  inclination  toward  it.  The 
woman  you  selected  for  your  wife  was  so  highly  gifted 
in  mind,  with  powers  so  vast,  and  such  quick  and  clear 
perception,  altogether  so  superior  to  the  general  run 
of  females,  you  have  perhaps  formed  a  too  enlarged 
opinion  of  the  capacities  of  our  sex,  and  having  never 


LETTER    TO    JOHN    ADAMS.  253 

witnessed  their  frailties,  are  not  aware  of  the  danorers  to 
which  they  are  exposed,  by  acquirements  above  their 
strength. 

"The  systems  of  the  ancients  have  been  quite  out  of 
my  reach,  excepting  the  Dialogues  of  Plato,  which  Mr. 
A.  recommended  to  me  last  year,  and  which  I  read  at- 
tentively. I  cannot  say  that  I  am  entirely  unacquainted 
with  their  different  theories,  but  that  acquaintance  has 
been  too  superficial  to  make  them  well  understood,  and 
I  have  been  too  much  inclined  to  view  them,  as  difficult 
of  practice,  and  not  tending  much  to  the  real  benefit  of 
mankind.  With  the  modern  philosophers  I  have  become 
more  intimate,  if  I  may  make  use  of  such  a  word,  speak- 
ing of  works  which  I  have  read,  but  which  I  could  not 
understand  or  digest.  Locke  has  puzzled  me,  Berkley 
amused  me,  Reid  astonished  me,  Hume  disgusted  me, 
and  Tucker  either  diverted  me  or  set  me  to  sleep.  This 
is  a  very  limited  sort  of  reading,  and  you  will  laugh  at 
my  catalogue  of  names  which  have  at  best,  I  believe, 
but  little  tide  to  the  rank  of  philosophers,  or  at  least 
must  come  in  at  the  fag  end.  I  have  dipped  into  others 
and  thrown  them  aside,  but  I  have  never  seen  anything 
that  would  sadsfy  my  mind,  or  that  would  compare  with 
the  chaste  and  exquisitely  simple  doctrines  of  Chris- 
tianity. 

"  I  fear  you  will  find  this  letter  more  extravagant  than 
any  you  have  ever  received  from  me,  but  I  have  made 
it  a  rule  to  follow  where  the  current  of  my  ideas  carried 
me,  and  to  give  them  to  you  in  a  perfect  undress.     My 


2  54  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

reading  has  been  too  general,  and  too  diffuse  to  be  very 
beneficial.  French  authors  have  occupied  my  attention 
the  largest  portion  of  my  life,  but  their  venom  was 
destroyed,  by  the  events  which  were  continually  passing 
almost  before  my  eyes,  and  which  showed  how  wicked 
was  the  practice  resulting  from  such  theories.  You,  my 
dear  sir,  have  ever  possessed  a  nature  too  ardent,  too 
full  of  benevolent  feelings  to  all  your  race,  with  a  mind 
too  noble,  and  a  capacity  too  enlarged,  to  sink  into  the 
cold  and  thankless  state  of  stoicism.  Your  heart  is  too 
full  of  all  the  generous  and  kindly  affections  for  you 
ever  to  acquire  such  a  cold  and  selfish  doctrine.  No, 
my  dear  sir,  it  was,  it  is  impossible.  Look  at  your  past 
life,  retrace  all  the  eminent  services  you  have  rendered 
to  your  country,  and  to  mankind,  and  if  you,  by  unfore- 
seen and  uncontrollable  events,  have  been  prevented 
from  doing  all  you  wished,  all  you  desired,  toward  pro- 
moting their  felicity,  let  their  unequalled  prosperity  (in 
j)roducing  which,  you  had  so  large  a  share)  sooth  your 
latest  hours,  and  cheer  your  heart  with  the  conviction, 
that  to  you,  in  a  great  measure,  they  owe  it;  and  this 
sentiment  alone  will  be  sufficient  reward.  I  set  out  in 
life  with  the  most  elevated  notions  of  honor  and  prin- 
ciple ;  ere  I  had  entered  it  fairly,  my  hopes  were  blasted, 
and  my  ideas  of  mankind,  that  is,  all  the  favorable  ones 
almost,  were  suddenly  chilled,  and  I  was  very  near 
forming  the  horrid  and  erroneous  opinion,  that  no  such 
thinpf  as  virtue  existed.  This  was  a  dreadful  doctrine  at 
the  age  of  little  more  than  twenty,  but  it  taught  me  to 


LETTER    TO    JOHN    ADAMS,  255 

isrllect  and  not  to  '  build  my  house  in  the  sand.'  My 
life  has  been  a  Hfe  of  changes,  and  I  had  early  accus- 
tomed myself  to  the  idea  of  retirement.  The  nature  of 
our  institutions,  the  various  turns  of  policy  to  which  an 
elective  government  is  ever  liable,  has  long  occupied 
my  thoughts,  and  I  trust  I  may  find  strength  to  sustain 
any  of  the  changes  which  may  be  in  store  for  me,  with 
fortitude,  dignity,  and  I  trust  cheerfulness.  To  these 
changes,  I  can  never  attach  the  idea  of  disgrace.  Pop- 
ular governments  are  peculiarly  liable  to  factions,  to 
cabals,  to  intrigue,  to  the  juggling  tricks  of  party,  and 
the  people  may  often  be  deceived  for  a  time,  by  some 
fair  speaking  demagogue,  but  they  will  never  be  de- 
ceived long;  and  though  they  may,  in  a  moment  of  ex- 
citement, sanction  an  injustice  toward  an  old  and  faithful 
servant,  they  appreciate  his  worth,  and  hand  his  name 
down  with  honor  to  posterity,  even  though  that  '  name 
may  not  be  agreeable  to  the  fashionables.'  It  is  one 
u'hich  I  take  a  pride  in  bearing,  and  one  that  I  hope  and 
pray  my  children  may  never  dishonor. 

"  What  you  say  concerning  the  Floridas  is,  I  believe, 
universally  allowed,  and  as  to  the  effect  upon  the  name, 
why,  it  is  of  little  importance,  provided  the  substance  is 
left,  and  the  act  undeniable.  There  is  the  lance,  let  the 
lance  speak — I  can  safely  swear  as  an  individual  I  never 
set  my  heart  on  what  the  world  calls  a  great  reward.  I 
am  too  well  assured  that  'uneasy  lies  the  head  that 
wears  a  crown,'  and  the  station  is  too  full  of  thorns  to 
render  it  very  desirable.     I  have  no  relish  for  being  ab- 


256  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

solutely  crucified  for  the  sake  of  a  short  pre-eminence. 
You  have,  I  suppose,  seen  the  correspondence  between 
Gen.  Scott  and  old  Hickory  ?  How  do  you  like  the 
epistle  of  the  former  ?  What  do  you  think  of  De  Witt 
CHnton's  reply  to  the  charge  insinuated  against  him  ? 
We  hear  of  nothing  but  complaints  of  the  times,  and 
our  commercial  world  are  in  great  distress.  In  Balti- 
more (that  city  where  the  South  American  privateers 
are  owned  and  fitted  out  by  native  citizens  in  the  very 
face  of  the  public,  and  committing  depredations  on  the 
property  of  their  fellow-citizens)  there  are  failures  evenj 
day,  and  it  is  said  the  mischief  will  extend  to  all  parts 
of  the  Union.  In  Virginia,  a  man  who  broke  out  of  the 
jail  in  this  city,  has  offered  himself  as  a  candidate  for 
Congress,  telling  the  electors  that  he  would  take  only 
six  dollars  a  day,  as  he  thinks  eight  too  much;  because 
if  he  found  his  pay  insufficient,  he  would  play,  and  by 
this  means  insure  himself  a  living.  That  he  had  often 
played  with  their  late  member,  and  with  many  of  the 
most  distinguished  members  of  Congress,  who  used  to 
send  for  him  to  play  with  them.     Such  things  are — 

"Adieu,  my  dear  Sir." 

"  During  the  eight  years  in  which  Mrs.  Adams  pre- 
sided in  the  house  of  the  Secretary  of  State,"  writes  her 
son,  Hon.  Charles  Francis  Adams,  in  1839,  "no  exclu- 
sions were  made,  in  her  invitations,  merely  on  account 
of  any  real  or  imagined  political  hostility ;  nor,  though 
keenly  alive  to  the  reputation  of  her  husband,  was  any 


FAILURE    OF    HER    HEALTH.  257 

disposition  manifested  to  do  more  than  to  amuse  and 
enliven  society.  In  this,  the  success  was  admitted  to  be 
complete,  as  all  will  remember  who  were  then  in  the 
habit  of  frequenting  her  dwelling.  But  in  proportion  as 
the  great  contest  for  the  Presidency,  in  which  Mr.  Adams 
was  involved,  approached,  the  violence  of  partisan  warfare 
began  to  manifest  its  usual  bad  effects,  and  Mrs.  Adams 
decided  to  adopt  habits  of  greater  seclusion.  When  at 
last  the  result  had  placed  her  in  the  President's  mansion, 
her  health  becran  to  fail  her  so  much,  that  thouofh  she 
continued  to  preside  upon  occasions  of  public  reception, 
she  ceased  to  appear  at  any  other  times,  and  she  begc.n 
to  seek  the  retirement  which  since  her  return  to  private 
life  she  has  preferred.  Mr.  Adams  has  been,  it  is  truf;, 
and  still  continues,  a  representative  in  Congress,  frovii 
the  State  of  Massachusetts,  and  this  renders  necessary 
an  annual  miorration  from  that  State  to  Washing^ton  arid 
back  again,  as  well  as  a  winter  residence  within  the 
sound  of  the  gayeties  of  that  place ;  but  while  her  age 
and  health  dispense  her  from  the  necessities  of  attending 
them,  severe  domestic  afflictions  have  contributed  to  re- 
move the  disposition.  Thus  the  attractions  of  great 
European  capitals,  and  the  dissipation  consequent  upon 
high  official  station  at  home,  though  continued  through 
that  part  of  her  life  when  habits  become  most  fixed,  have 
done  nothing  to  change  the  natural  elegance  of  her  man- 
ners, nor  the  simplicity  of  her  tastes.  In  the  society  of 
a  few  friends  and   near  relatives,  and  in  the  cultivation 

of  the  religious  affections  without  display,  she  draws  all 
17 


258  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

the  consolation  that  can  in  this  world  be  afforded  for  her 
privations.  To  the  world  Mrs.  Adams  presents  a  fine 
example  of  the  possibility  of  retiring  from  the  circles  of 
fashion,  and  the  external  fascinations  of  life,  in  time  still 
to  retain  a  taste  for  the  more  quiet  though  less  showy 
attractions  of  the  domestic  fireside.  A  strong  literary 
taste  which  has  led  her  to  read  much,  and  a  capacity  for 
composition  in  prose  and  verse,  have  been  resources  for 
her  leisure  moments;  not  with  a  view  to  that  exhibition 
which  renders  such  accomplishments  too  often  fatal  to 
the  more  delicate  shades  of  feminine  character,  but  for 
her  own  gratification  and  that  of  a  few  relations  and 
friends.  The  late  President  Adams  used  to  draw  much 
amusement,  in  his  latest  years  at  Ouincy,  from  the  accu- 
rate delineation  of  Washington  manners  and  character, 
which  was  regularly  transmitted,  for  a  considerable 
period,  in  letters  from  her  pen.  And  if  as  time  ad- 
vances, she  becomes  gradually  less  able  to  devote  her 
sense  of  sight  to  reading  and  writing,  her  practice  of  the 
more  homely  virtues  of  manual  industry,  so  highly  com- 
mended in  the  final  chapter  of  the  book  of  Solomon, 
still  amuses  the  declining  days  of  her  varied  career." 

On  the  fourth  of  March,  1825,  John  Ouincy  Adams 
was  inaugurated  as  President  of  the  United  States,  and 
took  tlie  executive  chair,  which  had  been  entered  twenty- 
eight  years  before  by  his  venerated  father.  The  scene 
at  the  inauguration  was  splendid  and  imposing.  At  an 
early  hour  of  the  day,  the  avenues  leading  to  the  capitol 
presented  an  animated  spectacle.     Crowds  of  citizens  on 


lNAUt;URATION    SCENES.  259 

foot,  in  carnages  and  on  horseback,  were  hastening  to 
the  great  centre  of  attraction.  Strains  of  martial  music 
and  the  movements  of  the  various  miHtary  corps  height- 
ened the  excitement. 

At  1 2  o'clock,  the  military  escort,  consisting  of  gen- 
eral and  staff  officers  and  several  volunteer  companies,  re- 
ceived the  President-elect  at  his  residence,  together  with 
President  Monroe  and  several  officers  of  government. 
The  procession,  led  by  the  cavalry,  and  accompanied  by  an 
immense  concourse  of  cidzens,  proceeded  to  the  capitol, 
where  it  was  received  with  military  honors  by  the  U.  S. 
Marine  Corps,  under  Col.  Heixlerson. 

Meanwhile  the  hall  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
presented  a  brilliant  spectacle.  The  galleries  and  th-e 
lobbies  were  crowded  with  spectators.  The  sofas  be 
tween  the  columns,  the  bar,  the  promenade  in  the  rea>- 
of  the  Speaker's  chair,  and  the  three  outer  rows  of  the 
members'  seats,  were  occupied  by  a  splendid  array  of 
beauty  and  fashion.  On  the  left,  the  Diplomatic  Corps, 
in  the  costume  of  their  respective  courts,  occupied  the 
place  assigned  them,  immediately  before  the  steps  which 
led  to  the  chair.  The  officers  of  the  army  and  navy 
were  scattered  in  groups  throughout  the  hall.  In  front 
of  the  clerk's  table  chairs  were  placed  for  the  Judges  of 
the  Supreme  Court. 

At  twenty  minutes  past  12  o'clock,  the  marshals,  in 
blue  scarfs,  made  their  appearance  in  the  hall,  at  the 
head  of  the  august  procession.  First  came  the  officers 
of  both  Houses  of  Congress.     Then  appeared  the  Pres- 


260  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS, 

ident-elect,  followed  by  the  venerable  ex-President  Mon^ 
roe,  with  his  family.  To  these  succeeded  the  Judges  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  in  their  robes  of  office,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Senate,  preceded  by  the  Vice-President, 
Avith  a  number  of  the  members  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives. 

Mr.  Adams,  in  a  plain  suit  of  black,  made  entirely  of 
American  manufactures,  ascended  to  the  Speaker's  chair 
and  took  his  seat.  The  Chief-Justice  was  placed  in  front 
of  the  clerk's  table,  having  before  him  another  table  on 
the  floor  of  the  hall,  on  the  opposite  side  of  which  sa  t 
the  remaining  judges,  with  their  faces  toward  the  chair. 
The  doors  having  been  closed  and  silence  proclaimed, 
Mr.  Adams  arose,  and  in  a  distinct  and  firm  tone  of  voice 
read  his  inaugural  address. 

The  congratulations  which  then  poured  in  from  every 
side,  occupied  the  hands,  and  could  not  but  reach  the 
heart,  of  President  Adams.  The  meeting  between  hiin 
and  his  venerated  predecessor  had  in  it  something  pecu- 
liarly affecting.  General  Jackson  was  among  the  earliest 
of  those  who  took  the  hand  of  the  President ;  and  their 
looks  and  deportment  toward  each  other  were  a  rebuke 
to  that  littleness  of  party  spirit  which  can  see  no  merit 
in  a  rival,  and  feel  no  joy  in  the  honor  of  a  competitor. 
Shortly  after  i  o'clock,  the  procession  commenced  leav- 
ing the  hall.  The  President  was  escorted  back  as  he 
came.  On  his  arrival  at  his  residence,  he  received  the 
compliments  and  respects  of  a  great  number  of  ladies 
and  gentlemen,  who  called  on  him  to  tender  their  con- 


VISIT    OF    LAFAYEITK.  26 1 

gratulations.  The  proceedings  of  the  day  were  closed 
by  an  inaugural  ball  in  the  evening.  Among  the  guests 
present  were  the  President  and  Vice-President,  ex-Pres- 
ident Monroe,  a  number  of  foreign  ministers,  with  many 
civil,  military  and  naval  officers.* 

Mrs.  Adams  gave  up  the  comforts  of  her  home,  and 
took  possession  of  the  White  House  soon  after  the  in- 
auguration. The  spring  and  summer  wore  quietly  away, 
for  even  in  the  White  House,  gayety  was  confined  to 
the  winter  season,  and  save  the  visits  of  friends,  nothing 
occurred  to  vary  the  quiet  of  every-day  life.  Her  chil- 
dren were  a  consolation  to  her  in  her  infirm  condition, 
for  her  health  failed  her  as  soon  as  she  moved  into  the 
President's  house- 
It  was  the  happy  fortune  of  Mrs.  Adams  to  be  the 
occupant  of  the  White  House  when  Lafayette  visited 
the  United  States,  who  at  the  invitation  of  the  President 
spent  the  last  weeks  of  his  stay  at  the  Executive 
Mansion,  and  from  there,  on  the  7th  of  September,  1825, 
bade  an  affecting  farewell  to  the  land  of  his  adoption. 

As  the  last  sentence  of  this  farewell  address  was 
pronounced,  Lafayette  advanced  and  took  President 
Adams  in  his  arms,  while  tears  poured  down  his  ven- 
erable cheeks.  Retiring  a  few  paces,  he  was  over- 
come by  his  feelings,  and  again  returned  and  falling  on 
the  neck  of  Mr.  Adams,  exclaimed  in  broken  accents, 
"God  bless  you."     The   sighs  and   tears  of  the  many 

*  National  Intelligencer,  1825. 


262  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

assembled  bore  testimony  to  the  affecting  solemnity  of 
the  scene.  Having  recovered  his  self-possession,  the 
General  stretched  out  his  hands,  and  was  in  a  moment 
surrounded  by  the  greetings  of  the  whole  assembly, 
who  pressed  upon  him,  each  eager  to  seize,  perhaps  for 
the  last  time,  that  beloved  hand  which  was  opened  so 
freely  for  our  aid  when  aid  was  so  precious,  and  which 
grasped  with  firm  and  undeviating  hold  the  steel  which 
so  bravely  helped  to  achieve  our  deliverance.  The 
expression  which  now  beamed  from  the  face  of  this 
exalted  man  was  of  the  finest  and  most  touching  kind. 
The  hero  was  lost  in  the  father  and  the  friend.  Dignity 
melted  into  subdued  affection,  and  the  friend  of  Wash- 
ington seemed  to  linQfer  with  a  mournful  delipht  amone 
the  sons  of  his  adopted  country. 

A  considerable  period  was  then  occupied  in  convers- 
ing with  various  individuals,  while  refreshments  were 
presented  to  the  company.  The  moment  of  departure 
at  length  arrived  ;  and  having  once  more  pressed  the 
hand  of  Mr.  Adams,  he  entered  the  barouche,  accom- 
panied by  the  Secretaries  of  State,  of  the  Treasury,  and 
of  the  Navy,  and  passed  from  the  capital  of  the  Union. 

The  whole  scene — the  peals  of  artillery,  the  sounds  of 
numerous  military  bands,  the  presence  of  the  vast  con- 
course of  people,  and  the  occasion  that  assembled  them, 
produced  emotions  not  easily  described,  but  which  every 
American  heart  can  readily  conceive. 

In  the  following  September,  she  accompanied  her 
husband  on  a  visit  to  his  aged    father  at  Quincy,  but 


TWO  IMPORTANT  EVENTS.  263 

being  taken  very  ill  at  Philadelphia,  the  President 
was  compelled  to  proceed  without  her.  He  did  not 
remain  long,  and  on  the  14th  of  October  set  out  again 
for  Washington.  It  was  the  last  time  Mr.  Adams  ever 
saw  his  father!  "The  aged  patriarch  had  lived  to  see 
his  country  emancipated  from  foreign  thraldom,  its  in- 
dependence acknowledged,  its  union  consummated,  its 
prosperity  and  perpetuity  resting  on  an  immovable  foun- 
dation, and  his  son  elevated  to  the  hifrhest  oflice  in  its 
gift.  It  was  enough!  His  work  accomplished — the 
book  of  his  eventful  life  written  and  sealed  for  im- 
mortality— he  w^as  ready  to  depart  and  be  at  peace. 
The  4th  of  July,  1826,  will  long  be  memorable  for  one 
of  the  most  rem.arkable  coincidences  that  have  ever 
taken  place  in  the  history  of  nations.  It  was  the  fiftieth 
anniversary,  the  jubilee  of  American  Independence! 
Preparations  had  been  made  throughout  the  Union  to 
celebrate  the  day  with  unusual  pomp  and  displa)-.  John 
Adams  and  Thomas  Jefferson  had  both  been  invited  to 
participate  in  the  festivities  of  the  occasion,  at  their  sev- 
eral places  of  abode.  But  a  higher  summons  awaited 
them:  they  were  bidden  to  a  'jubilee'  above,  which 
shall  have  no  end!  On  that  half-century  Anniversary 
of  American  Independence,  at  nearly  the  same  hour  of 
the  day,  the  spirits  of  Adams  and  Jefferson  took  their 
departure  from  earth  !  Amid  the  rejoicings  of  the  peo- 
ple, the  peals  of  artillery,  the  strains  of  music,  the  exul- 
tations of  a  great  nation  in  the  enjoyment  of  freedom, 
peace,  and  happiness,  they  were  released  from  the  toils 
of  life,  and  allowed  to  enter  on  their  rest." 


264  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

These  two  patriarchs  had  been  corresponding  regu- 
larly, and  their  letters  had  attracted  the  attention  of  Eu- 
rope as  well  as  America.  Mr.  Adams  had  written  the 
last  letter,  in  which  occurs  the  following  expression: 
"Half  an  hour  ago,  I  received,  and  this  moment  have 
heard  read,  for  the  third  or  fourth  time,  the  best  letter 
that  was  ever  written  by  an  octogenarian,  dated  June 
1st." 

The  editor  of  the  London  Morning  Chronicle  prefaces 
his  notice  of  this  correspondence  with  the  following 
remarks: 

"  What  a  contrast  the  following  correspondence  of 
the  two  rival  Presidents  of  the  greatest  republic  of  the 
world,  reflecting  an  old  age  dedicated  to  virtue,  temper- 
ance, and  philosophy,  presents  to  the  heart-sickening 
details  occasionally  disclosed  to  us,  of  the  miserable 
beings  who  fill  the  thrones  of  the  continent.  There  is 
not,  perhaps,  one  sovereign  of  the  continent,  who  in  any 
s';nse  of  the  word  can  be  said  to  honor  our  nature,  while 
iiiany  make  us  almost  ashamed  of  it.  The  curtain  is 
seldom  drawn  aside  without  exhibitinof  to  us  beines 
worn  out  with  vicious  indulgence,  diseased  in  mind,  if 
not  in  body,  the  creatures  of  caprice  and  insensibility. 
On  the  other  hand,  since  the  foundation  of  the  Ameri- 
can Republic,  the  chair  has  never  been  filled  by  a  man 
for  whose  life  (to  say  the  least)  any  American  need 
once  to  blush.  It  must,  therefore,  be  some  compensa- 
tion to  the  Americans  for  the  absence  of  pure  monarchy, 
that  when  they  look  upward,  their  eyes  are  not  always 
met  by  vice,  and  meanness,  and  often  idiocy." 


LEAVES    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  265 

The  administration  of  Mr.  Adams  was  remarkable  for 
the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  country,  and  there  was 
therefore  no  event  in  Mrs.  Adams'  social  life  of  a  stirring 
nature.  Her  husband  was  certainly  the  most  learned 
man  who  has  yet  occupied  the  Presidential  chair.  No 
one  at  all  acquainted  with  his  life  will  deny  this  asser- 
tion. Profoundly  versed  in  the  lore  of  the  ancients,  he 
was  yet  more  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  history  ot 
modern  governments,  and  was  a  deep  thinker,  as  well  as 
an  eloquent  speaker.  A  Southern  clergyman  visited  him 
durinof  his  administration,  and  was  astonished  to  find  he 
was  intimately  acquainted  with  all  sects  and  creeds,  and 
bad  read  every  book  he  could  mention.  Finally  he  re- 
membered one  work  of  importance,  and  asked  if  he  had 
lead  it.  Mr.  Adams  had  not,  whereupon  the  minister, 
delighted  with  his  success,  told  it  everywhere  and  was 
afterward  known  as  the  man  who  had  read  one  more 
book  than  John  Ouincy  Adams. 

Mrs.  Adams  retired  from  the  White  House  with 
heartfelt  pleasure,  and  sought  the  quiet  her  delicate 
health  demanded. 

The  followinof  interestincr  account  of  an  interview  with 
ex-President  Adams,  by  a  Southern  gendeman,  in  1834, 
affords  some  conception  of  the  home  of  Mrs.  Adams  at 
Ouincy. 

"Yesterday,  accompanied  by  my  friend  T.,  I  paid  a 
visit  to  the  venerable  ex-President,  at  his  residence  in 
Ouincy.  A  violent  rain  setting  in  as  soon  as  we  ar- 
rived, gave  us   from  five   to  nine  o'clock  to  listen  to  the 


266  LOUISA    CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

learning  of  this  man  of  books.  His  residence  is  a 
plain,  very  plain  one ;  the  room  into  which  we  were 
ushered  (the  drawing-room,  I  suppose)  was  furnished  in 
true  republican  style.  It  is  probably  of  ancient  con- 
struction, as  I  perceived  two  beams  projecting  from  the 
low  ceiling,  in  the  manner  of  the  beams  in  a  ship's  cabin. 
Prints  commemorative  of  political  events,  and  the  old 
family  portraits  hung  about  the  room  ;  common  straw 
matting  covered  the  floor,  and  two  candlesticks,  bearing 
sperm  candles,  ornamented  the  mantel-piece.  The 
personal  appearance  of  the  ex-President  himself  corre- 
sponds with  the  simplicity  of  his  furniture.  He  resem- 
bles rather  a  substantial,  well-fed  farmer,  than  one  who 
has  wielded  the  destinies  of  this  mighty  confederation, 
and  been  bred  in  the  ceremony  and  etiquette  of  a 
European  court.  In  fact,  he  appears  to  possess  none 
of  that  sternness  of  character  which  you  would  suppose 
to  belong  to  one  a  large  part  of  whose  life  has  been 
spent  in  political  warfare,  or,  at  any  rate,  amidst  scenes 
requiring  a  vast  deal  of  nerve  and  inflexibility.  Mrs. 
Adams  is  described  in  a  word — a  lady.  She  has  all  the 
warmth  of  heart  and  ease  of  manner  that  mark  the 
character  of  the  Southern  ladies,  and  from  which  it 
would  be  no  easy  matter  to  distinguish  her. 
.  "The  ex-President  was  the  chief  talker.  He  spoke 
with  infinite  ease,  drawing  upon  his  vast  resources  with 
the  certainty  of  one  who  has  his  lecture  before  him 
ready  written.  The  whole  of  his  conversation,  which 
steadily  he  maintained  for  nearly  four  hours,  was  a  con- 


AGAIN    IN    WASHINGTON.  267 

tinued  stream  of  liofht.  Well  contented  was  I  to  be  a 
listener.  His  subjects  were  the  architecture  of  the 
middle  ages;  the  stained  glass  of  that  period;  sculpture, 
embracing  monuments  particularly.  On  this  subject, 
his  opinion  of  Mrs.  Nightingale's  monument  in  West- 
minster Abbey  differs  from  all  others  that  I  have  seen  or 
heard.  He  places  it  above  every  other  in  the  Abbey, 
and  observed  in  relation  to  it,  tliat  the  spectator  *  saw 
nothing  else.'  Milton,  Shakespeare,  Shenstone,  Pope, 
Byron,  and  Southey  were  in  turn  remarked  upon.  He 
gave  Pope  a  w^onderfully  high  character,  and  remarked 
that  one  of  his  chief  beauties  was  the  skill  exhibited  in 
ranging  the  ccsural  pause,  quoting  from  various  parts 
of  his  author  to  illustrate  his  remarks  more  fully.  He 
said  very  little  on  the  politics  of  the  country.  He  spoke 
at  considerable  length  of  Sheridan  and  Burke,  both  of 
whom  he  had  heard,  and  could  describe  with  the  most 
graphic  effect.  He  also  spoke  of  Junius;  and  it  is  re- 
markable that  he  should  place  him  so  far  above  the  best 
of  his  cotemporaries.  He  spoke  of  him  as  a  bad  man  ; 
but  maintained,  as  a  writer,  that  he  had  never  been 
equalled.  The  conversation  never  flagged  for  a  mo- 
ment ;  and  on  the  whole  I  shall  remember  my  visit  to 
Quincy  as  amongst  the  most  instructive  and  pleasant  I 
ever  passed." 

Mrs.  Adams  enjoyed  the  pleasures  of  her  home  but 
one  year,  when  Mr.  Adams  was  elected  a  member  of 
Congress,  and  from  that  time  forward  to  the  hour  of 
his    death   he   represented    the   Plymouth   district  with 


268  LOUISA   CATHERINE    ADAMS. 

fidelity  and  ever  increasing  honor  and  power.  Mr. 
Adams  took  his  seat  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
in  December,  1831,  and  he  lived  in  his  own  house  sit- 
uated on  I  street.  For  fifteen  years  he  was  a  member 
of  Congress,  residing  continually  at  Washington,  al- 
though making  frequent  visits  to  his  old  home. 

More  than  fourscore  years  had  left  their  impress  upon 
Mr.  Adams'  brow,  and  he  was  still  in  the  midst  of  his 
usefulness.  In  November,  1846,  he  had  a  stroke  of 
paralysis,  from  which  he  never  recovered.  On  the 
morning  of  that  day,  while  sojourning  at  the  residence 
of  his  son,  in  Boston,  preparing  to  depart  for  Washing- 
ton, he  was  walking  out  with  a  friend  to  visit  a  new 
medical  college,  and  was  attacked  by  the  way.  After 
several  weeks,  he  improved  sufficiently  to  return  to  his 
duties  at  the  capital,  but  never  afterward  entirely  re- 
covered. On  Monday,  the  21st  of  February,  1848,  at 
half-past  one  o'clock,  whilst  in  his  seat  in  the  House,  he 
was  struck  a  second  time  with  the  same  disease.  He 
vyas  removed  to  the  Speaker's  apartment,  borne  on  a 
sofa  by  several  members,  and  plasters  applied,  which 
seemed  to  relieve  him.  Mrs.  Adams  was  sent  for,  and 
on  his  recovering  consciousness,  was  gladdened  by  her 
presence  in  answer  to  his  inquiry  for  her.  She  was  in 
extreme  illness  and  suffering  acute  pain,  but  remained 
beside  him,  sustained  by  her  niece  and  nephew.  Mr. 
Adams  lay  in  the  Speaker's  room  in  a  state  of  apparent 
unconsciousness  through  the  2 2d  and  23d — Congress, 
in  the  mean  time,  assembling  in   respectful  silence,  and 


DEATH    OI-     MR.    ADAMS.  269 

immediately  adjourning  from  day  to  day.  At  seven 
o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the  23d  he  died.  President 
Polk  issued  a  Proclamation  announcing  his  death,  and 
orders  were  issued  from  all  the  Departments  directing 
that  suitable  honors  should  be  paid  the  illustrious  dead. 
The  funeral  took  place  in  the  Capitol,  at  twelve  o'clock, 
Saturday,  26th  of  February,  after  which  the  body  was 
conveyed  to  the  Congressional  bur)ing-ground,  to  re- 
main until  the  completion  of  the  preparations  for  the 
removal  to  Quincy. 

The  following  letter  of  thanks  from  Mrs.  Adams, 
addressed  to  the  Speaker,  was  laid  before  the  House  of 
Representatives : 

"  Washington,  February  iQ,(h,  1848. 

"Sir: — The  resolutions  in  honor  of  my  dear  deceased 
husband,  passed  by  the  illustrious  assembly  over  which 
you  preside,  and  of  which  he  at  the  moment  of  his 
death  was  a  member,  have  been  duly  communicated 
to  me. 

"  Penetrated  with  grief  at  this  distressing  event  of  my 
life,  mourning  the  loss  of  one  who  has  been  at  once  my 
example  and  my  support  through  the  trials  of  half  a 
century,  permit  me  nevertheless  to  express  through  you 
my  deepest  gratitude  for  the  signal  manner  in  which  the 
public  regard  has  been  voluntarily  manifested  by  your 
honorable  body,  and  the  consolation  derived  to  me  nnd 
mine  from  the  reflection  that  the  unwearied  efforts  of  an 
old  public  servant  have  not  even  in  this  world  proved 


^JO  LOUISA    CATHERINP:    ADAMS. 

without  tlieir  reward  in   the  generous  appreciation  of 
them  by  his  country. 

"  With  great  respect,  I  remain,  Sir,  your  obedient 
servant, 

"Louisa  Catherine  Adams." 

On  the  following  week,  the  remains  of  the  deceased 
ex-President  were  conveyed  to  Ouincy,  accompanied  by 
a.  committee  of  one  from  each  State  and  Territory  in 
the  Union. 

After  this  sad  event  in  Mrs.  Adams'  Hfe,  she  lived 
uninterruptedly  at  her  home  in  Quincy,  enjoying  the 
society  of  her  children  and  relations.  Mr.  Charles 
Francis  Adams  thus  closes  a  letter  reearding-  his 
mother: 

"  I  should  be  very  glad  to  be  of  service  to  you  if  I 
were  possessed  of  the  material  which  you  desire  in 
connection  with  the  life  of  my  mother.  But  I  fear 
they  at^e  not  to  be  found  among  the  papers  left  by 
her.  She  wrote  much  and  read  a  great  deal,  both  of 
French  and  English  literature,  and  translated  from  the 
former  for  the  amusement  of  her  friends.  She  also 
wrote  verses  frequently  in  the  same  way.  But  all 
these  accomplishments  of  hers,  including  a  nice  taste  in^ 
music  and  a  well-cultivated  voice,  are  matters  of  little 
moment  in  a  publication,  however  much  they  may  con- 
tribute to  the  refinement  of  the  social  circle  at  home. 
Although  she  lived  to  quite  an  advanced  age,  her 
health  was  always  delicate  and  variable,  so  as  to  inter- 


HER     DEATH.  27 T 

rupt  the  even  tenor  of  her  Hfe  and  disincHne  her  to  the 
efforts  required  for  general  society,  especially  diirinor 
her  twelve  years  spent  at  different  courts  in  Europe." 

Mrs.  Adams  died  the  14th  of  May,  1852,  and  was 
buried  by  the  side  of  her  husband,  in  the  family  burying- 
ground  at  Quincy,  Massachusetts. 


VII. 

RACHEL  JACKSON. 

The  cruel  misrepresentations  of  political  opponents 
had  crushed  the  heart  of  Rachel  Jackson,  and  ended 
her  days  before  her  husband  took  possession  of  the 
Home  of  the  Presidents.  She  was  denied  the  erati- 
fication  of  accompanying  him  to  Washington,  and 
of  ofracinor  the  White  House,  but  she  was  even  i/t 
death  the  President's  wife,  and  as  such  is  ranked.  I.u 
his  heart  she  lived  there,  the  object  of  the  most  death- 
less and  exalted  affection,  the  spiritual  comforter  and 
companion  of  his  lonely  hours.  The  friends  and  visit- 
ors of  the  new  President  saw  her  not,  nor  was  she 
mentioned  by  the  throng ;  but  to  him  she  w^as  ever 
present  in  the  form  of  memory  and  eternal,  undying 
love. 

The  day  of  party  strife  and  bitterness  toward  Gen- 
eral Jackson  has  passed  away  forever,  and  the  nobility 
and  refined  sensibility  of  his  nature  are  at  last  appreci- 
ated. The  slanders  and  falsehoods  which  embittered 
his  earthly  life,  have  been  eclipsed  by  the  sunlight  of 
truth,  and  over  the  lapse  of  years  comes  ringing  the 
prophetic  assertion  of  the  immutability  of  right.  He  is 
avenged.  Once  it  was  the  fashion  to  revile  him,  and 
multitudes  in  this  country  who  had  no  independent 
judgments  of  their  own,  took  up   the  gossip  of  the  day 

'272^ 


u 


/ 


REMOVAL   TO   TENNESSEE.  2/3 

and  pursued  their  congenial  calling-,  even  after  death  had 
taken  him  from  their  sight  forever. 

Down  from  the  canvas  beams  his  speaking  eye  upon 
us,  and  its  meaning  seems  to  say,  justice  to  her  is  honor 
to  me.  With  feelings  an  American  only  can  appreciate, 
the  task  is  undertaken,  and  whatever  its  defects  may 
be,  its  merit  is  its  truthfulness. 

In  1779  Colonel  John  Donelson,  a  brave  and  wealthy 
old  Virginia  surveyor,  started  to  the  banks  of  the  Cum- 
berland with  a  party  of  emigrants.  He  had  been  pre- 
ceded by  Captain  James  Robertson  and  his  companions; 
nine  sturdy  pioneers,  who  had  engaged  to  build  hut.";, 
plant  corn,  and  make  as  comfortable  a  home  as  possible 
for  the  band  that  was  to  follow.  This  consisted  of 
families,  and  among  them  the  families  of  several  c  f 
those  adventurous  pioneers. 

The  country  was  full  of  Indians,  the  forests  deejt, 
wild  and  unexplored,  and  the  perils  very  great.  la 
order  to  escape  the  toil  and  danger  of  travelling  through 
the  wilderness.  Colonel  Donelson  accomplished  the 
journey  by  water.  It  was  a  distance  of  more  than  two 
thousand  miles,  and  never  before  had  any  man  been 
bold  enough  to  project  such  a  voyage.  They  sailed 
down  the  Holston  river  to  the  Tennessee,  down  the 
Tennessee  to  its  junction  with  the  Ohio,  up  the  Ohio 
till  they  reached  the  Cumberland,  and  up  this  stream  to 
the  French  Salt  Springs,  on  the  spot  where  now  stands 
the  city  of  Nashville.  Colonel  Donelson  kept  an  ac- 
count of  this  remarkable  and  perilous  voyage,  "entitled. 


274  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

"Journal  of  a  voyage,  intended  by  God's  permission,  in 
the  good  boat  Adventure,  from  Fort  Patrick  Henry  on 
Holston  river,  to  the  French  Salt  Springs  on  Cumber- 
land river,  kept  by  John  Donelson,"  and  the  thrilling 
incidents  and  remarkable  personal  adventures  are 
deeply  interesting. 

They  were  four  months  on  the  journey,  the  sufferings 
and  privations  of  which  can  scarcely  be  appreciated  by 
the  more  fortunate  who  now  travel  the  same  way  amid 
quiet  woods,  green  fields,  and  peaceful  country  homes. 
To  those  adventurers,  the  dangerous  points  of  the  rivers 
were  unknown,  and  many  were  the  accidents  that  befell 
them.  They  started  in  the  depths  of  winter,  and  were 
obliged  to  encounter  excessive  cold  and  frosts.  But 
worse  than  all,  the  Indians  were  ever  on  the  watch  to 
entrap  them.  The  journal  says,  "we  still  perceived 
them,  marching  down  the  river  in  considerable  bodies, 
keeping  pace  with  us."  The  wildest,  most  romantic,  and 
lonely  spot  on  this  continent  is  the  "Whirl,"  in  the  Ten- 
nessee river,  where  the  river  is  compressed  within  less 
than  half  its  usual  width  by  the  Cumberland  mountain 
which  juts  in  on  both  sides.  Its  beauty  is  only  equalled 
by  its  danger.  In  passing  through  this  place,  a  large 
canoe,  containing  all  the  property  of  one  of  the  emigrants, 
was  overturned  and  the  little  cargo  was  lost.  The  family 
had  gone  into  a  larger  boat  for  safety.  "  The  company," 
says  Colonel  Donelson,  "  pitying  their  distress,  concluded 
to  halt  and  assist  in  recovering  the  property.  We  had 
landed  on  the  northern  shore,  at  a  level  spot,  and  were 


FRONTIER    LIFE.  275 

going-  up  to  the  place,  when  the  Indians,  to  our  astonish- 
ment, appeared  immediately  over  us  on  the  opposite 
cliffs,  and  commenced  firing  down  upon  us,  which  occa- 
sioned a  precipitate  retreat  to  the  boats.  We  immedi- 
ately moved  off." 

One  of  this  intrepid  little  band  of  emigrants,  sharing 
in  its  hardships  and  dangers,  was  Rachel  Donelson,  the 
daughter  of  Col.  John  Donelson.  She  was  then  a  bright- 
eyed,  black-haired,  sprightly,  pretty  child  of  about  twelve 
years.  On  the  24th  of  April,  1780,  they  reached  the  little 
settlement  of  log-cabins  that  Captain  Robertson  and  his 
band  had  made  ready  for  them.  But  perils  and  priva- 
tions were  not  past.  The  Indians  were  wily  and  untiring 
in  laying  their  crafty  ambushes,  and  many  were  the 
victims  that  fell  within  their  deadly  grasp,  and  were 
despatched  by  their  murderous  weapons.  With  all 
these  troubles,  however,  the  settlement  grew  in  numbers 
;\.nd  in  strength  ;  such  was  the  intrepidity  and  the  per- 
severing energy  which  inspired  these  heroic  men  and 
women.  As  Colonel  Donelson  was  one  of  the  most 
influential,  he  became  one  of  the  wealthiest  of  the  settlers. 
He  had  owned  extensive  iron  works  in  Pittsylvania 
County,  Virginia,  which  he  had  sold  when  he  started  to 
the  West.  Prior  and  subsequent  to  the  revolution,  he 
was  a  member  of  the  House  of  Burgesses,  and  had  re- 
peatedly represented  the  counties  of  Campbell  and  Pitt- 
sylvania. Thomas  Jefferson  and  Patrick  Henry  were 
his  personal  friends ;  he  held  commissions  under  each 
of  them  to  execute  important  trusts,  such  as  the  survey 


276  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

of  State  lines,  the  negotiating  of  treaties  with  Indians,  or 
establishing  the  authority  of  the  State  over  distant  terri- 
tory. His  confidence  in  General  Washington  was  im- 
plicit, and  the  earnestness  with  which  he  spoke  his 
sentiments  had  a  most  happy  and  conservative  influence 
over  the  people  of  the  West.  The  little  colony  soon 
began  to  suffer  from  the  insufficient  supply  of  corn  and 
of  powder  and  lead,  and  as  the  family  of  Colonel  Donel- 
son  numbered  many  children  and  servants,  he  concluded 
to  remove  with  them  to  Kentucky.  He  had  in  that  State, 
moreover,  land  claims  which  he  could  more  easily  atteni'l 
to  and  secure  by  being  there.  During  his  residence 
there,  his  daughter  Rachel  was  married  to  Lewis  Robards, 
a  man  of  good  family.  She  had  grown  up  amid  the  trials 
and  dangers  of  a  frontier  life,  but  the  examples  that  sh  f^ 
daily  saw  of  noble  fortitude,  of  calm  bravery,  and  of 
heroic  labor  were  worth  many  a  tamer  and  weaker 
lesson  of  more  civilized  life.  She  grew  up  accomplished 
in  the  higher  art  of  making  home  attractive  and  relatives 
happy.  She  was  at  the  same  time  lively  and  gentle, 
gifted  with  patience  and  prudence,  and  winning  in  her 
simple  and  unaffected  manners. 

Soon  after  his  dauofhter's  marriao^e,  Colonel  Donelson 
returned  to  Tennessee  with  his  family.  In  the  fall  of 
1785,  while  surveying  in  the  woods  far  from  home,  this 
•,  brave  and  gallant  gentleman  was  pierced  by  bullets  from 
an  unseen  foe,  and  died  the  same  night.  Judge  John 
Overton,  then  a  young  lawyer,  in  the  fall  of  1787,  went 
to  Mercer  County,  Kentucky,  and  became  a  boarder  in 


AN    UNIIArrV    MARRIAGE.  277 

the  family  of  Mrs.  Robards,  where  Lewis  Robards  and 
his  wife  were  Hving.  Judge  Overton  was  not  long  in 
discovering  that  they  lived  very  unhappily,  because  Cap- 
tain Robards  was  jealous  of  a  gentleman  named  Short. 
His  disposition  was  extremely  unfortunate,  and  kept  the 
whole  family  in  uneasiness  and  distress.  This  unpleasant 
state  of  affairs  continued  to  increase  until  Captain 
Robards  wrote  to  his  mother-in-law,  the  widowed  Mrs. 
Donelson,  requesting  that  she  would  take  her  daughter 
home,  as  he  did  not  intend  to  live  with  her  any  longer. 
.Some  time  in  the  latter  part  of  1 788,  Samuel  Donelson 
<ame  and  started  away  with  his  sister.  Judge  Overton 
i^iys,  "  my  clear  and  distinct  recollection  is,  that  it  was 
said  to  be  a  final  separation,  at  the  instance  of  Captain 
Robards ;  for  I  well  recollect  the  distress  of  old  Mrs. 
Robards  on  account  of  her  dauo-hter-in-law  Rachel 
going  away,  and  on  account  of  the  separation  that  was 
about  to  take  place,  together  with  the  circumstance  of 
the  old  lady's  embracing  her  affectionately.  The  old 
lady  always  blamed  her  son  Lewis,  and  took  the  part  of 
her  dau<7hter-in-law." 

Judge  Overton  further  remarks  that  he  never  heard 
any  of  the  family  censure  young  Mrs.  Robards  on  ac- 
count of  the  unhappy  difference  between  her  husband 
and  herself;  but  that  he  frequently  heard  them  express 
the  most  favorable  sentiments  repfardinor  her. 

As  Stated  in  his  narrative,  published  in  1827,  Judge 
Overton,  deciding  to  fix  his  residence  in  Tennessee,  left 
old  Mrs.  Robards,  with  the   promise  that  he  would  use 


278  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

his  best  endeavors  to  effect  a  reconciliation  between  her 
son  Lewis  and  his  wife,  particularly  as  her  son  seemed 
unhappy,  and  regretful  of  what  had  occurred.  The 
Judge  took  occasion  to  speak  with  him  upon  the  subject, 
and  he  said  he  was  convinced  that  his  suspicions  were 
unfounded,  and  that  he  wished  to  live  with  his  wife. 
Upon  arriving  at  his  destination  in  Tennessee,  by  a  re- 
markable and  romantic  coincidence,  the  lud[re  aeain 
became  a  boarder  in  the  same  house  with  Mrs.  Lewis 
Robards.  Mrs.  Donelson,  her  mother,  was  not  only 
willino-  to  accommodate  him,  but  was  elad  to  add  to  the 
number  of  her  protectors  against  the  Indians.  Another 
lawyer,  Andrew  Jackson,  became  a  boarder  with  Mrs. 
Donelson  at  the  same  time,  being  introduced  by  Judge 
Overton.  "  Soon  after  my  arrival,"  continues  the  Judge 
in  his  narrative,  "I  had  frequent  conversations  with  Mrs. 
Lewis  Robards,  on  the  subject  of  living  happily  with  her 
husband.  She,  with  much  sensibility,  assured  me  that 
no  effort  to  do  so  should  be  wanting  on  her  part ;  and  I 
communicated  the  result  to  Captain  Robards  and  his 
mother,  from  both  of  whom  I  received  congratulations 
and  thanks. 

"Captain  Robards  had  previously  purchased  a  pre- 
emption in  this  country  on  the  south  side  of  the  Cum- 
berland river,  in  Davidson  county,  about  five  miles  from 
where  Mrs.  Donelson  then  lived.  In  the  arrangement 
for  a  reunion  between  Captain  Robards  and  his  wife,  I 
understood  it  was  agreed  that  Captain  Robards  was  to 
live  in  this  country  instead  of  Kentucky;   and  that  until 


JEALOUSY    AND    FLIGHT.  279 

it  was  safe  to  go  to  his  own  land,  he  and  his  wife  were  to 
live  at  Mrs.  Donelson's."  They  became  reunited  in  the 
year  17S9. 

"  Not  many  months  elapsed  before  Robards  became 
jealous  of  Jackson,  which,  I  felt  confident,  was  without 
the  least  crround.  Some  of  his  irritating-  conversations 
on  this  subject  with  his  wife,  I  heard  amidst  the  tears  of 
herself  and  her  mother,  who  were  greatly  distressed.  I 
urged  to  Robards  the  unmanliness  of  his  conduct,  afte* 
the  pains  I  had  taken  to  produce  harmony  as  a  mutual 
friend  of  both  families,  and  my  honest  conviction  that  his 
suspicions  were  groundless.  These  remonstrances 
seemed  not  to  have  the  desired  effect.  As  much  conv 
motion  and  unhappiness  prevailed  in  the  family  as  uy 
that  of  Mrs.  Robards,  in  Kentucky.  At  length  I  con\' 
municated  to  Jackson  the  unpleasant  situation  of  living 
in  a  family  where  there  was  so  much  disturbance,  and 
concluded  by  telling  him  that  we  would  endeavor  to  get 
some  other  place.     To  this  he  readily  assented. 

"  Being  conscious  of  his  innocence,  Jackson  said  he 
would  talk  to  Robards.  What  passed  between  them  I 
do  not  know.  Mrs.  Donelson  related  that  Robards  be- 
came violently  angry  and  abusive,  and  said  that  he  was 
determined  not  to  live  with  Mrs.  Robards.  Jackson  re- 
tired from  the  family  and  went  to  live  at  Mansker's  Sta- 
tion. Captain  Robards  remained  several  months  with 
his  wife,  and  then  went  to  Kentucky.  Soon  after  this 
affair,  Mrs.  Robards  went  to  live  at  Colonel  Hays',  who 
married  her  sister. 


28o  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

"  Some  time  in  the  fall  of  1 790,  there  was  a  report 
afloat  that  Captain  Robarcls  intended  to  come  down  and 
take  his  wife  to  Kentucky.  This  created  great  uneasi- 
ness both  with  Mrs.  Donelson  and  her  daughter,  the 
latter  of  whom  was  much  distressed,  being  convinced  after 
two  fair  trials,  as  she  said,  that  it  would  be  impossible 
to  live  with  Captain  Robards  ;  and  of  this  opinion  was  I, 
with  all  those  I  conversed  with,  who  were  acquainted 
with  the  circumstances.  During  the  winter  of  i  79 1 ,  Mrs. 
Donelson  told  me  of  her  daughter's  intention  to  go  down 
the  river  to  Natchez,  to  some  of  their  friends,  in  order 
to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  Captain  Robards,  as  she  said 
he  had  threatened  to  haunt  her.  Knowing,  as  I  did, 
Captain  Robards'  unhappy  disposition,  and  his  temper 
'T'rowino-  out  of  it,  I  thouo^ht  she  was  rioht  to  keep  out 
of  the  way,  though  I  do  not  believe  that  I  so  expressed 
myself  to  the  old  lady  or  to  any  other  person. 

"The  whole  affair  gave  Jackson  great  uneasiness.  In 
his  singularly  delicate  sense  of  honor,  and  in  what  I 
thought  his  chivalrous  conceptions  of  the  female  sex,  it 
occurred  to  me  tliat  he  was  distinguishable  from  every 
other  person  with  whom  I  was  acquainted.  About  the 
time  of  Mrs.  Donelson's  communication  to  me  respecting 
her  daughter's  intention  of  going  to  Natchez,  I  perceived 
m  Jackson  symptoms  of  more  than  usual  concern.  Wish- 
ing to  ascertain  the  cause,  he  frankly  told  me  that  he  was 
the  most  unhappy  of  men,  in  having  innocently  and  un- 
intentionally been  the  cause  of  the  loss  of  peace  and 
happiness  of  Mrs.  Robards,  whom  he  believed  to  be  a 


DOWN    THE    MISSISSIPPI.  28 1 

fine  woman.  It  was  not  long  after  this  before  he  com- 
municated to  me  his  intention  of  eoinor  to  Natchez  with 
Colonel  Stark,  with  whom  Mrs.  Robards  was  to  descend 
the  river,  saying  that  she  had  no  friend  or  relation  that 
would  go  with  her,  or  assist  in  preventing  Stark  and  his 
family  and  Mrs.  Robards  from  being  massacred  by  the 
Indians,  then  in  a  state  of  war  and  exceedingly  trouble- 
some. Accordingly,  Jackson,  in  company  with  Mrs. 
Robards  and  Colonel  Stark,  a  venerable  and  highly  es- 
teemed old  man  and  friend  of  Mrs.  Robards,  went  down 
the  river  from  Nashville  to  Natchez,  in  the  winter  or 
early  spring  of  179 1.  It  was  not,  however,  without  the^- 
urgent  entreaties  of  Colonel  Stark,  who  wanted  protec 
fion  from  the  Indians,  that  Jackson  consented  to  accom 
I  any  them. 

"Previously  to  Jackson's  stardng,  he  committed  all 
his  law  business  to  me,  at  the  same  time  assuring  nvt 
that  as  soon  as  he  should  see  Col.  Stark  and  his  family 
and  Mrs,  Robards  situated  with  their  friends,  he  would 
fiturn  and  resume  his  practice.  He  descended  the 
liver,  returned  from  Natchez  to  Nashville,  and  was  at 
the  Superior  Court,  in  the  latter  place,  in  May,  1791, 
attending  to  his  business  as  a  lawyer  and  solicitor-gen- 
eral for  the  government.  Shortly  after  this  time,  we 
were  informed  that  a  divorce  had  been  granted  by  the 
Legislature  of  Virginia. 

"The  divorce  was  understood  by  the  people  of  this 
country  to  have  been  granted  in  the  winter  of  1790- 
1791.     I  was  in   Kentucky  in  the  summer  of  1791,  re- 


282  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

mained  at  old  Mrs.  Robards',  my  former  place  of  resi- 
dence, a  part  of  the  time,  and  never  understood  other- 
wise than  that  Captain  Robards'  divorce  was  final,  until 
the  latter  part  of  the  year  1793.  In  the  summer  of  i  791, 
General  Jackson  went  to  Natchez,  and,  I  understood, 
married  Mrs.  Robards,  then  believed  to  be  freed  from 
Captain  Robards,  by  the  divorce  in  the  vv'inter  of  1790- 
1791.  They  returned  to  Nashville,  settled  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  city,  where  they  have  lived  ever  since, 
esteemed  and  beloved  by  all  classes. 

"About  the  month  of  December,  i  793,  after  General 
Jackson  and  myself  had  started  to  Jonesborough,  in  East 
Tennessee,  where  we  practised  law,  I  learned  for  the  first 
time  that  Captain  Robards  had  applied  to  Mercer  Court, 
in  Kentucky,  for  a  divorce,  which  had  then  recently  been 
granted ;  and  that  the  Legislature  had  not  absolutely 
granted  a  divorce,  but  left  it  for  the  Court  to  do.  I  need 
not  express  my  surprise,  on  learning  that  the  act  of  the 
Virginia  Legislature  had  not  divorced  Captain  Robards. 
I  informed  General  Jackson  of  this,  who  was  equally 
surprised;  and  during  our  conversation,  I  suggested  the 
propriety  of  his  procuring  a  license  on  his  return  home, 
and  having  the  marriage  ceremony  again  performed,  so 
as  to  prevent  all  future  cavilling  on  the  subject. 

"  To  this  suggestion,  he  replied  that  he  had  long  since 
been  married,  on  the  belief  that  a  divorce  had  been 
obtained,  which  was  the  understanding  of  every  person 
in  the  country;  nor  was  it  without  difficulty  he  could  be 
mduced  lo  believe  otherwise. 


v.;»r 


A    HAPPY    UNION..  283 

"  On  our  return  home  from  Jonesborough,  in  January. 
1794,  to  Nashville,  a  license  was  obtained,  and  the  mar- 
riage ceremony  again  performed. 

"The  slowness  and  inaccuracy  with  which  information 
was  obtained  in  Tennessee  at  that  time,  will  not  be  sur- 
prising when  we  consider  its  insulated  and  dangerous 
situation,  surrounded  on  every  side  by  the  wilderness, 
and  by  hostile  Indians,  and  that  there  was  no  mail  estab- 
lisl^ed  until  about  1797." 

Subsequent  events  proved  this  marriage  to  be  one  of 
the  very  happiest  that  was  ever  formed.  A  romantic 
person  would  say  that  it  was  made  in  Heaven,  and  cer- 
tainly it  had  the  requisites  of  a  heavenly  union.  Noth- 
ing could  exceed  the  admiration,  and  love,  and  even 
deference  of  General  Jackson  for  his  wife.  Her  wish  to 
him  was  law.  It  was  a  blessed  ordering  of  Providence 
that  this  kind,  good  heart  should  find  at  last,  after  so 
many  troubles,  a  tender  and  true  friend  and  protector, 
understanding  her  perfectly,  and  loving  her  entirely. 

Mrs.  Jackson  was  a  noble  woman,  and  abundantly 
blessed  with  superior  sense.  She  was  a  good  manager, 
a  kind  mistress,  always  directing  the  servants,  and  taking 
care  of  the  estate  in  her  husband's  frequent  absences, 
and  withal  a  generous  and  hospitable  neighbor. 

She  had  a  great  many  nieces  and  nephews,  some 
of  whom  were  nearly  all  the  time  staying  with  her. 
She  was  very  lively  in  her  manners,  well  knowing  how 
to  tell  stories,  and  amuse  the  young  people  of  the  neigh- 
borhood, who  were  much  attached  to  her,  all  calling  her 


284  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

affectionately  Aunt  Rachel,  as  her  nieces  and  nephews 
did. 

About  the  year  1804,  General  Jackson  fixed  his  resi- 
dence upon  a  superb  estate  of  a  thousand  acres,  twelve 
miles  from  Nashville,  which  he  named  the  Hermitage. 
They  lived  at  first  in  an  ordinary  frame  building,  suffi- 
ciendy  comfortable,  but  rather  small.  No  lack  of  space 
in  the  house,  however,  could  contract  the  liberal  and 
hospitable  spirit  of  the  master  and  mistress  of  the  I^er- 
mitage.  When  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette  visited  Nash- 
ville on  his  return  to  America,  there  was  an  entertain- 
ment given  in  his  honor  at  the  Hermitage,  to  which  many 
ladies  and  gentlemen  were  invited.  At  this  banquet, 
and  during  his  stay  in  Nashville,  General  Lafayette  was 
particularly  respectful  and  attentive  to  Mrs.  Jackson  ; 
and  after  his  return  to  France,  he  never  failed,  in  writing 
to  General  Jackson, 'to  send  her  his  compliments. 

But  the  General  was  the  "prince  of  hospitality,"  as 
one  of  his  neighbors  said,  "not  because  he  entertained 
a  great  many  people,  but  because  the  poor  belated  ped- 
lar was  as  welcome  as  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  made  so  much  at  his  ease  that  he  felt  as 
thoug-h  he  had  orot  home." 

One  who  often  visited  General  Jackson's  house  wrote 
that  "it  was  the  resort  of  friends  and  acquaintances,  and 
of  all  strangers  visiting  the  State;  and  the  more  agree- 
able to  all  from  the  perfect  conformity  of  Mrs.  Jackson's 
character  to  his  own.  She  had  the  General's  own  warm 
heart,  frank  manners,  and  hospitable  temper,  and  no  two 


THE  CHILD  AND  LAMB.  2S5 

persons  could  have  been  better  suited  to  each  other, 
Hved  more  happily  together,  or  made  a  house  more  at- 
tractive to  visitors.  She  was  always  doing  kind  things 
in  the  kindest  manner.  No  bashful  youth  or  plain  old 
man,  whose  modesty  set  them  down  at  the  lower  end 
of  the  table,  could  escape  her  cordial  attention,  any  more 
than  the  titled  grentlemen  at  her  ricrht  and  left." 

She  had  no  children  of  her  own,  and  it  was  a  source 
of  recrret  to  both;  but  a  fortunate  circumstance  threw  a 
little  child  across  her  pathway,  and  she  gladly  took  the 
babe  to  her  home  and  heart.  Her  brother  had  twin 
boys  born  to  him,  and  wishing  to  help  her  sister  in  a 
care  which  was  so  great,  took  one  of  them  to  the  Her- 
mitage when  it  was  but  a  few  days  old. 

The  General  soon  became  extremely  attached  to  the 
little  guest,  and  adopted  him,  giving  him  his  own  nanKj, 
and  treating^  him  from  that  time  with  unremittino;  kind- 
ness  and  affection,  as  if  he  were  indeed  his  only  son. 
A  traveller,  who  arrived  at  the  Hermitage  one  wet,  chilly 
evening  in  February,  says:  "I  came  upon  General  Jack- 
son in  the  twilight,  sitting  alone  before  the  fire,  a  lamb 
and  a  child  between  his  knees.  Seeing  me,  he  called  a 
servant  to  remove  the  two  innocents  to  another  room, 
and  said  that  the  child  had  cried  because  the  lamb  was 
out  in  the  cold,  and  beo[-o;ed  him  to  brincr  it  in,  which  he 
had  done  to  please  the  child — his  adopted  son,  then  not 
two  years  old."  This  son,  Andrew  Jackson,  jr.,  was  the 
sole  heir  of  the  General's  larcje  estate.  His  widow 
resides  yet  at   the  Hermitage,  at   the  request   of  the 


286  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

State  of  Tennessee,  which  purchased  the  homestead  at 
the  close  of  the  war, 

A  few  days  after  the  battle  of  New  Orleans,  Mrs. 
Jackson  arrived  in  that  city  with  a  party  of  Tennesseeans, 
brinorinor  with  her  the  little  Andrew,  then  about  seven 
years  old.  She  participated  in  the  attentions  that  were 
showered  upon  the  General,  who  showed  her,  himself, 
the  most  marked  respect  and  deference.  The  ladies  of 
New  Orleans  presented  her  v;ith  a  valuable  and  beauti- 
ful set  of  topaz  jewelry.  In  her  portrait,  at  the  Hermi- 
tage, Mrs.  Jackson  wears  the  dress  which  she  appeared 
in  at  the  grand  ball  given  in  New  Orleans,  in  honor  of 
the  General.  It  is  white  satin,  ornamented  with  lace, 
and  jewelry  of  pearls.  This  portrait  was  painted  by 
Earl,  an  artist  who  married  a  niece  of  Mrs.  Jackson's 
and  resided  many  years  in  General  Jackson's  family. 

In  1816  Mrs.  Jackson  joined  the  church,  while  attend- 
ing the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Gideon  Blackburn,  a  Pres- 
byterian divine,  whom  she  ever  after  regarded  with  the 
deepest  veneration.  To  gratify  her,  General  Jackson 
built  a  little  church  on  the  estate,  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
from  the  house.  It  was  plain  and  simple,  and  small,  but 
very  dear  to  Mrs.  Jackson,  who  spent  in  it  many  happy 
hours.  It  was  a  blessing  to  the  neighbors,  who  found  it 
convenient  and  pleasant  to  send  their  children  to  Sun- 
day-school, and  to  attend  church  themselves  when  it  was 
impossible  to  go  farther. 

A  new  house  was  built  during  the  summer  of  18 19. 
It  was  erected  expressly  for  Mrs.  Jackson,  and  every- 


THE    HERMITAGE.  2S7 

thing  regarding  it  was  done  exactly  in  accordance  with 
her  wishes.  Major  Lewis,  who  visited  the  site,  recom- 
mended a  more  elevated  position  to  the  General.  "  No, 
Major,"  said  he,  "Mrs.  Jackson  chose  this  spot,  and  she 
shall  have  her  wish.  I  am  going  to  build  this  house  for 
her ;  I  don't  expect  to  live  in  it  myself."  He  was  at  the 
time  very  feeble  and  exhausted  from  the  severe  illness 
succeeding  his  return  from  the  Seminole  war,  and  was, 
as  he  supposed,  not  long  for  this  world. 

The  house  is  situated  in  a  level  place,  rather  lower 
than  the  avenue  which  leads  to  it,  and  from  the  gate 
only  glimpses  of  it  can  be  obtained.  The  surrounding 
country  is  exceedingly  beautiful.  The  long  stately 
avenue  of  cedars  ends  in  an  oval-shaped  lawn  in  which 
stands  the  mansion.  Both  in  front  and  in  the  rear  of 
the  house  there  are  grand  double  piazzas,  with  stone 
floors  supported  by  large  fluted  columns,  round  which 
clinqr  and  bloom  beautiful  rose  vines.  Under  the  shade 
of  these  drooping  tendrils,  General  Jackson  and  his 
cherished  wife  were  wont  to  saunter,  occasionally  stop- 
ping to  more  distinctly  hear  the  rich  notes  of  the  south- 
ern songsters,  or  to  catch  the  mournful  cry  of  the  ring- 
dove in  the  distant  cotton-field. 

The  walls  of  the  hall  are  covered  with  scenes  from 
Telemachus,  which  was  formerly  so  fashionable  for  paper- 
ing. The  fairy  beauty  of  Calypso's  enchanted  island, 
with  its  sparkling  fountains,  its  flowery  groves,  its  elegant 
pillared  palaces,  its  dancing  nymphs,  its  altars  of  incense 
and  votive  wreaths,  its  graceful  groups  of  statues  on  the 


288  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

seashore,  and,  above  all.  Its  lovely  queen  and  the  noble 
youth  and  his  wise  Mentor,  lend  an  air  of  interest  and 
beauty  to  this  cool  hall  which  is  delightful.  There  is 
hanging  here  a  handsome  portrait  of  Columbus.  The 
furniture  is  old-fashioned<  and  dignified,  and  there  are 
several  busts  of  distinguished  men.  That  of  General 
Jackson  was  taken  by  Mr.  Persico,  made  in  Italy  and 
presented  to  the  General. 

The  parlors  are  large,  pleasant  rooms,  in  which  there 
are  many  curiosities,  and  various  odd  and  exquisite  pieces 
of  furniture  that  were  presented  at  different  times  to 
General  Jackson.  The  house  is  spacious  and  handsome. 
When  first  built,  it  was  the  most  elegant  one  in  all  the 
country  around.  It  was  a  gift  of  love  from  the  General 
to  his  beloved  wife,  when  he  did  not  expect  to  survive 
her ;  and  it  was  arranged  to  suit  her  slightest  wish,  ths.t 
nothing  mieht  be  wantins:  to  her  satisfaction,  which  it  was 
possible  in  his  power  to  provide.  The  extensive  and 
carefully-ordered  garden  was  tended  and  overlooked  by 
her,  and  contains  a  great  many  sweet  shrubs  and  ever- 
greens and  beautiful  flowers,  a  larofe  number  of  which 
she  planted  herself. 

In  1 82 1  General  Jackson  was  appointed  Governor  of 
Florida,  and  left  the  Hermitage  the  i8th  of  April,  accom- 
panied by  Mrs.  Jackson  and  the  "two  Andrews,"  the 
adopted  son  and  nephew — Andrew  Jackson  Doneh 
son.*     The  following  September  she  wrote  to  a  friend 

*  After  General  Jackson  landed  at  Blakely,  near  Mobile,  he  proceeded  up  the 
river  about  forty  miles,  to  a  military  post  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Brook,  and 


LEITER    TO    A    FRIEND.  289 

at  Nashville:  "The  General,  I  think,  is  the  most  anxious 
man  to  eet  home  I  ever  saw.  He  calls  it  a  wild-ijoose 
chase,  his  coming  here.  He  tells  me  to  say  to  you  and 
Captain  Kingsley,  that  in  the  multiplicity  of  business,  if 
he  had  or  could  have  seen  any  advantages  for  your 
better  prospects,  he  would  have  written  Captain  Kings- 
ley  long  since.  You  are  in  the  best  country  in  America. 
O,  how  has  this  place  been  overrated.  We  have  had  a 
great  many  deaths  ;  still  I  know  it  is  a  healthy  climate. 
Amongst  many  disadvantages,  it  has  few  advantages.     I 


called  "  Moritpelier."  Here  he  was  detained  some  days,  during  which  time  he 
learned  that  the  Indian  Chief  "  Wealherfoid,"  who  commanded  at  the  destruction 
and  massacre  of  Fort  Mimms,  was  living  but  a  few  miles  off.  General  Jackson  re 
membered  the  brave  conduct  of  the  Chief  at  the  battle  of  "  Horse  Shoe,"  where, 
losing  the  most  of  his  wairiors,  he  surrendered  alone,  remarking,  that  "  he  had 
fought  as  long  as  he  had  men,  and  would  fight  longer  if  he  could;  "  *  and  at  his 
suggestion  Colonel  Brook  invited  the  Chief  to  dinner  the  following  day.  The  next 
day  his  appearance  attracted  much  attention  at  the  fort,  and  when  dinner  was  an- 
nounced. General  Jackson  escorted  him  to  the  presence  of  the  ladies,  introducing 
him  to  Mrs.  Jackson  as  the  Chief  of  the  Creek  Indians  and  the  bravest  of  his  tribe. 
She  smilingly  welcomed  him  and  said,  "she  was  pleased  to  meet  him  at  the  festive 
board,  and  hoped  that  the  strife  of  war  was  ended  forever."  "  I  looked  up,"  he 
said,  "  and  found  all  eyes  upon  me,  but  I  could  not  speak  a  word.  I  found  some- 
thing choked  me,  and  I  wished  I  was  dead  or  at  home."  Colonel  Brook  came  to 
his  rescue  by  replying  to  Mrs.  Jackson,  and  the  dinner  passed  ofif  pleasantly,  but  the 
Chief  related  the  occurrence  a  few  years  later,  and  said,  "  he  was  never  caught  ir. 
such  quarters  again." 

*  Weatherford's  words  were,  "  I  am  in  your  power.  Do  with  me  what  you  please. 
I  have  done  the  white  people  all  the  harm  I  could.  I  fought  them,  and  fought  them 
bravely.  There  was  a  time  when  I  had  a  choice ;  I  have  none  now.  Even  hope 
*  is  dead.  Once  I  could  animate  my  warriors ;  but  I  cannot  animate  the  dead.  They 
can  no  longer  hear  my  voice ;  their  bones  are  at  Tallushatches,  Talladega,  Emucfaw 
and  To-ho-pCTka." 
19 


290  RACHEL    JACKSON. 

pity  Mr.  J.,  he  will  have  so  much  fatigue.  Not  one  min- 
ister of  the  gospel  has  come  to  this  place  yet ;  no,  not 
one  ;  but  we  have  a  prayer-meeting  every  Sabbath.  The 
house  is  crowded  so  that  there  is  not  room  for  them. 
Sincere  prayers  are  constantly  sent  up  to  the  Hearer  of 
prayer  for  a  faithful  minister.  Oh,  what  a  reviving,  re- 
freshing scene  it  would  be  to  the  Christians,  though  few 
in  number.  The  non-professors  desire  it.  Blessed  be 
God,  he  has  a  few  ev^n  here  that  are  bold  in  declaring 
their  faith  in  Christ.  You  named,  my  dear  friend,  my 
going  to  the  theatre.  I  went  once,  and  then  with  much 
reluctance.  I  felt  so  little  interest  in  it,  how'ever,  I  shall 
not  take  up  much  time  in  apologizing.  My  situation  is 
a  peculiar  one  at  this  time.  I  trust  in  the  Lord  my  dear 
child,  Andrew,  reached  home  in  safety.  I  think  you  all 
must  feel  a  great  deal  for  me,  knowing  how  my  very 
heart  recoiled  at  the  idea  of  what  I  had  to  encounter. 
Many  have  been  disappointed.  I  have  not.  I  saw^  it  as 
plain  as  I  now  do  when  it  is  passing.  O  Lord,  forgive, 
if  thy  will,  all  those  my  enemies  that  had  an  agency  in 
the  matter.  Many  w^ander  about  like  lost  sheep  ;  all 
have  been  disappointed  in  offices.  Crage  has  a  con- 
stable's place  of  no  value.  The  President  made  all 
the  appointments  and  sent  them  from  the  City  of  Wash- 
ington." 

General  Jackson,  in  a  letter  to  Captain  John  Donelson, 
Sr.,  speaks  thus  of  his  wife: 

"I  hope  we  will  be  able  to  leave  here  by  the  ist  of 
October  for  home.     Mrs.  Jackson's  health  is  not  good, 


I-Il-E    IN    FLORIDA.  29I 

and  I  am  determined  to  travel  with  her  as  early  as  my 
business  and  her  health  will  permit,  even  if  I  should  be 
compelled  to  come  back  to  settle  my  business  and  turn 
over  the  government  to  my  successor,  I  am  determined 
to  resign  my  office  the  moment  Congress  meets,  and  live 
near  you  the  balance  of  my  life.  '•■'  *  "^^  Before  this 
reaches  you,  Colonel  Butler  and  our  little  son  will  be 
with  you,  I  hope.  I  trust  you  will  extend  your  care  over 
liiin  until  we  are  where  he  has  gone.  You  may  be  sure 
your  sister  will  not  remain  long  behind.  We  all  enjoy 
tolerable  health  at  present,  but  I  am  wearied  with  busi- 
ness and  this  hot  weather." 

Mrs.  Jackson  sighed  for  her  quiet  home  and  her  litde 
church  during  her  stay  in  Florida.  Pensacola  was  so 
different,  and  the  people  so  entirely  divided  in  all  their 
tastes  and  pursuits  from  the  devout  Christian  matron, 
that  she  could  not  be  satisfied.  "  Three  Sabbaths,"  she 
says,  "I  spent  in  this  house  before  the  country  was  in 
possession  under  American  government.  The  Sabbath 
profanely  kept,  a  great  deal  of  noise  and  swearing  in  the 
streets ;  shops  kept  open,  trade  going  on  I  think  more 
than  on  any  other  day.  They  were  so  boisterous  on  that 
day  I  sent  Major  Stanton  to  say  to  them  that  the  ap- 
proaching Sunday  would  be  differently  kept.  And  must 
I  say,  the  worst  people  here  are  the  outcast  Americans 
and  negroes !  Yesterday  I  had  the  happiness  of  wit- 
nessinpf  the  truth  of  what  I  had  said.  Great  order  was 
observed ;  the  doors  kept  shut ;  the  gambling  houses 
demolished ;  fiddling  and  dancing  not  heard  any  more 
on  the  Lord's  day ;  cursing  not  to  be  heard. 


292  RACHEL    JACKSON. 

"Pensacola  is  a  perfect  plain:  the  land  nearly  as 
white  as  flour,  yet  productive  of  fine  peaches,  oranges 
in  abundance,  grapes,  figs,  pomegranates,  etc.  Fine 
flowers  grow  spontaneously,  for  they  have  neglected  the 
gardens,  expecting  a  change  of  government.  The 
town  is  immediately  on  the  bay — the  most  beautiful 
water  prospect  I  ever  saw;  and  from  10  o'clock  in  the 
morning  until  10  at  night  we  have  the  finest  sea-breeze. 
There  is  something  in  it  so  exhilarating,  so  pure,  so 
wholesome,  it  enlivens  the  whole  system.  All  the 
houses  look  in  ruins,  old  as  time.  Many  squares  of 
the  town  appear  grown  over  with  the  thickest  shrubs, 
weeping-willows,  and  the  Pride  of  China :  all  look  neg- 
lected. The  inhabitants  all  speak  Spanish  and  French. 
Some  speak  four  or  five  languages.  Such  a  mixed  mul- 
titude you  nor  any  of  us  ever  had  an  idea  of.  There 
are  fewer  white  people  far  than  any  other,  mixed  with 
all  nations  under  the  canopy  of  heaven,  almost  in 
nature's  darkness." 

On  the  3d  of  November,  General  and  Mrs.  Jack- 
son arrived  at  the  Hermitage,  delighted  to  be  again  at 
that  home  within  whose  doors  the  angels.  Peace  and 
Happiness,  awaited  their  return,  and  sat  with  folded 
wings. 

General  Jackson  set  out  for  Washington,  accompa- 
nied  by  his  wife,  in  1824,  going  all  the  way  in  their  own 
coach  and  four,  and  being  twenty-eight  days  on  the 
journey.  In  a  letter  to  a  friend  in  Nashville  she  says  : 
"We  are  boarding  in  the  same  house  with  the  nation's 


FESTIVITIES    AT    NEW    UKLEANS.  29^ 

guest,  General  Lafayette.  When  we  first  came  to  this 
house,  General  Jackson  said  he  would  go  and  pay  the 
Marquis  the  first  visit.  Both  having  the  same  desire, 
and  at  the  same  time,  they  met  on  the  entry  of  the 
stairs.  It  was  truly  interesting.  At  Charleston,  General 
Jackson  saw  him  on  the  field  of  battle  ;  the  one  a  boy 
of  twelve,  the  Marquis,  twenty  three." 

A  great  many  persons  paid  their  respects  to  Mrs. 
Jackson.  She  says,  "  there  are  not  less  than  from  fifty 
to  a  hundred  persons  calling  in  one  day."  While 
wondering  at  "  the  extravagance  of  the  people  in  dress- 
ing and  running  to  parties,"  she  speaks  with  enthusiasm 
of  the  churches  and  the  able  ministers. 

Soon  after  their  return  home,  Mrs.  Jackson's  health 
began  to  decline,  and  in  the  succeeding  years  of  Gen- 
eral Jackson's  campaign  for  the  Presidency,  it  con- 
tinued delicate.  She  went  with  the  General  to  New  Or- 
leans, in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1828,  and  witnessed 
his  splendid  reception  there.  "  She  was  waited  on  by 
Mrs.  Marigny  and  other  ladies,  the  moment  she  landed 
from  the  Pocahontas,  and  conducted  to  Mr.  Marigny's 
house,  where  refreshments  had  been  prepared,  and 
where  she  received  the  salutations  of  a  large  and  bril- 
liant circle.  The  festivities  continued  four  days,  at  the 
end  of  which,  the  General  and  Mrs,  Jackson  and  their 
friends  re-embarked  on  board  the  Pocahontas  and  re- 
turned homeward." 

Mrs.  Jackson's  health  continued  to  fail,  and  no  ex- 
cursions  or  remedies    were    found  availing.     She    had 


294  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

suffered  from  an  affection  of  the  heart ;  a  disease  which, 
increased  and  heightened  by  every  undue  excitement, 
was,  in  her  case,  exposed  to  the  most  alarming  ex- 
tremes and  continually  liable  to  aggravation.  The 
painful  paragraphs  in  regard  to  her  character  with 
which  the  papers  of  the  country  abounded,  wounded 
and  grieved  her  sorely.  The  circumstances  of  her 
marriage,  so  easily  misconstrued  and  so  lamentably  mis- 
understood by  many  whom  distance  and  meagre  infor- 
mation had  kept  in  ignorance,  were  used  by  the  polit- 
ical enemies  of  General  Jackson  as  lawful  weapons 
wherewith  they  might  assail  his  fair  fame  and  obstruct 
his  rapid  progress  to  the  highest  place  in  the  land. 
Considered  in  all  its  bearinofs,  there  is  not  in  the  whole 
world  a  position  more  honorable,  more  important,  or 
more  responsible,  than  that  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  Well  were  it  needful  to  choose  with 
circumspection  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  a  country  so 
vast,  of  a  people  so  intelligent  and  brave,  and  possess- 
ing the  elements  of  such  greatness  and  glory ;  who 
holds  in  his  grasp  such  a  multitude  of  destinies  ;  and 
who  is  able,  by  his  decisions,  to  continue  the  sunshine 
of  prosperity,  or  to  bring  the  bitter  blasts  of  adver- 
sity and  discord.  Hence  the  ardor  and  even  the  des- 
peration of  the  struggles  for  victory  in  each  Presiden- 
tial campaign.  The  same  enthusiasm  which  actuated 
the  friends  of  General  Jackson,  actuated  also  his  ene- 
mies ;  and  nothing  could  exceed  the  earnestness  and 
rancor  with    which    they   attacked   him.       Not    content 


HER    IILSDANDS    ELECTION.  295 

with  reviling^  him,  they  must  needs  drag  before  the 
public  the  long-forgotten  circumstances  of  his  mar- 
riage, and  wrest  tliem  to  suit  their  unworthy  purposes. 
The  kind  heart  of  Mrs.  Jackson,  though  wrung  with 
mortihcation  and  grief,  prompted  no  utterance  of  im- 
patience. She  said  very  little,  but  was  often  found  in 
tears.  Meanwhile,  her  health  continued  to  decline. 
It  was  too  hard  to  bear  that  he  to  whom  she  had  de- 
voted the  affections  and  enerc^ies  of  her  loner  life, 
should  be  taunted,  for  her  sake ;  that  he  should,  for 
her  sake,  be  considered  unworthy  of  the  trust  of  thaf 
nation  for  whose  defence  and  honor  he  had  undergone 
unnumbered  fatigues  and  conflicts  and  perils.  This 
silent  suffering  told  upon  her  spirits,  but  anxiety  to 
know  the  event  sustained  her. 

When  the  news  arrived  of  General  Jackson's  elec- 
tion to  the  Presidency,  it  was  received  with  rejoicings 
and  hilarity  in  Nashville  as  everywhere  else,  but  with 
calmness  by  him  and  her  who  were  so  highly  honored. 
Her  gratification  must  have  been  too  deep  and  heart- 
felt to  be  expressed  with  noise  and  mirth.  Despite 
the  calumnies  which  their  enemies  had  heaped  upon 
her  and  the  General,  the  nation  had  bestowed  upon 
him  its  highest  gift ;  and  had  confided,  for  a  time,  the 
keeping  of  its  honor  and  well-being  into  his  hands. 
The  sorrows  through  which  she  had  passed,  those 
clouds  that  had  hung  over  her  thorny  way,  had  been 
dispersed  by  the  favoring  wind  of  truth,  and  the  bright 
rays  of  peace  shone  upon  her  heart.     But  she  was  not 


296  RACHEL   JACKSON 

dazzled  by  the  new  prospects  opening  before  her.  The 
splendors  and  gayeties  of  a  life  in  the  White  House 
could  offer  her  no  attractions.  Her  domestic  and  sim- 
ple tastes  found  more  pleasure  in  her  own  home  and 
family-circle  at  the  beloved  Hermitage.  "  For  Mr.  Jack- 
son's' sake,"  said  she,  "I  am  glad;  for  my  own  part,  I 
never  wished  it."  She  seemed  to  regret  the  necessity  of 
a  residence  in  Washington,  and  remarked  to  a  friend  with 
an  expression  of  the  utmost  sincerity,  "  I  assure  you  that 
1  would  rather  be  a  door-keeper  in  the  house  of  my 
God,  than  to  live  in  that  Palace  in  Washington." 

Mrs.  Jackson  always  purchased  all  the  clothing  and 
household  articles,  both  for  her  own  and  the  servants' 
use.  Desiring  to  arrange  everything  comfortable  dur- 
ing the  winter,  for  she  knew  that  General  Jackson 
would  have  many  friends  at  the  Hermitage,  she  made 
frequent  visits  to  Nashville,  and  on  one  occasion  heard 
the  thoughtless  remarks  of  persons  who  probably  for- 
got a  moment  afterward  the  words  which  broke  the 
heart  of  their  victim.  It  was  her  custom  usually  to  go 
to  one  of  her  most  intimate  friends  on  reaching  the  city, 
and  have  the  horses  and  carriage  put  in  the  stable,  and 
then  go  out  shopping ;  but  on  this  occasion  she  went 
early  in  her  cumbrous  coach,  and  as  she  had  many  places 
to  visit,  determined  to  send  the  driver  to  a  livery  stable 
and  meet  it  in  the  afternoon  at  the  Nashville  Inn,  then 
the  principal  hotel  in  the  city. 

Weary  and  exhausted  after  a  tedious  day's  shopping, 
she  went  at  the  appointed  hour  to  the  parlor  of  the 


CALUMNIES    THAT    KILLED    HER.  297 

hotel,  and  while  waiting  there,  she  heard  her  name 
called  in  the  adjoining  room.  It  was  impossible  for  her 
not  to  hear,  and  there  she  sat,  pale  and  excited,  listen- 
ing to  a  repetition  of  calumnies  which  political  strife  had 
magnified  and  promulgated.  The  bare  truthful  outlines 
of  her  early  unfortunate  marriage  were  given,  but  so 
interwoven  with  false  misrepresentations,  that  she  could 
hardly  believe  herself  the  subject  of  remark.  All  she 
did  hear  was  never  known,  but  on  her  death-bed  she 
told  the  circumstance  to  her  husband,  and  then  he  under- 
stood the  cause  of  her  violent  attack.  He  had  tried  to 
keep  every  paragraph  and  abusive  line  out  of  her  siglit, 
and  hoped  that  now,  after  the  election  was  decided,  this 
unhappy  subject  of  "her  marriage  before  a  divorce  was 
granted,"  would  be  dropped  forever.  She  had  acted  as 
she  thought  was  the  best,  and  indeed  in  every  act  of  her 
life  she  discovered  the  fine  sense  she  displayed  in  her 
t:onduct  towards  her  first  husband.  But  the  malicious 
t^nvy  of  people  who  could  not  bear  her  elevation,  caught 
at  every  straw  to  revile  her  pure  and  blameless  life. 
Had  she  lived  unhappily  with  General  Jackson,  there 
mij^ht  have  been  some  excuse  for  considering  her  a 
weak  woman;  but  her  long,  happy  and  beautiful  exist- 
ence as  his  wife,  was  a  convincing  proof  of  her  affec- 
tionate nature,  and  religious,  high-minded  soul.  The 
fatal  error  of  her  youth,  in  marrying  a  man  her  intellect- 
ual and  moral  inferior,  was  more  than  atoned  for  in  the 
miserable  years  she  spent  as  his  unappreciated  wife. 
She  was  sensitive  and  refined,  and  her  nature  revolted 


298  RACHEL    JACKSON. 

at  his  coarseness.  She  had  acted  rashly  in  marr)ing 
him,  but  she  was  loth  to  part  with  him.  Was  she 
to  blame  that  she  did  not  know  his  character  thoroughly 
before  her  marriaee  ?  The  sioh  that  heaves  from  the 
hearts  of  thousands  of  women  as  they  recall  a  similar 
experience,  attests  her  innocence.  Was  she  to  blame 
for  marrying  again,  when  she  and  every  one  who  knew 
her  believed  iier  free?  He  had  never  provided  a  home 
for  her,  she  had  always  been  compelled  to  live  either 
with  her  mother  or  his,  thereby  sealing  her  doom,  for  no 
wife,  however  kind  her  husband  may  be,  can  be  as  happy 
in  the  home  of  her  parents  as  she  could  in  one  of  her 
own,  be  it  ever  so  lowly.  Captain  Robards  never  tried 
to  make  her  comfortable  or  contented,  but  augmented 
the  sorrows  of  her  young  heart  by  a  course  of  conduct 
revolting  in  even  the  most  degraded  of  men,  and  inex- 
cusable in  him,  since  he  was  of  a  respectable  family,  and 
supposed  to  be  somewhat  cultivated. 

But  her  offence  was  the  acceptance  of  a  companion  and 
friend,  who  would  shield  her  from  poverty  and  unhappi- 
ness,  and  add  to  her  life,  what  she  had  never  known,  a 
husband  and  a  home.  The  bonds  of  a  civil  marriage 
had  been  dissolved,  not  by  her  efforts,  but  by  her  ungen- 
erous, narrow-minded  husband,  and  she  had  become  the 
wife  of  a  man  eminently  suited  to  her.  With  all  the 
bitter  experience  of  her  short  married  life,  she  trustingly 
confided  her  happiness  into  the  keeping  of  one  who 
never  betrayed  it,  and  who  made  her  existence  a  con- 
tinued source  of  joy.     In  the  higher  courts,  in   her  con- 


HER    DISEASE    ASSERTS    ITSELF.  299 

science,  but  one  marriage  tie  was  recognized,  and  but 
one  possessed  the  entire  affection  of  her  young  and 
chastened  heart. 

It  had  been  arranged  that  a  grand  dinner  and  ball 
should  be  given  on  the  23d  of  December,  to  General 
and  Mrs.  Jackson,  that  day  being  the  anniversary  of  the 
night-battle  below  New  Orleans ;  a  day  rendered  cele- 
brated in  the  annals  of  his  country  by  his  own  heroic 
achievements. 

A  week  previous  to  this  intended  festival,  and  a  few 
days  after  her  visit  to  Nashville,  Mrs.  Jackson  was  seized 
with  a  spasmodic  affection  of  the  muscles  of  the  chest 
and  left  shoulder,  attended  with  an  irregular  action  of 
the  heart,  and  great  anxiety  of  countenance.  The  sus- 
pense and  uneasiness  occasioned  by  the  late  political 
strife  being  at  an  end,  and  the  uncertainty  of  the  event 
no  longer  torturing  her,  she  could  bear  up  no  fur- 
ther. One  of  the  physicians  in  attendance  upon  her, 
gives  the  followinor  minute  and  interestino-  account: 

"  Being  hastily  sent  for,  I  lost  no  time  in  rendering 
her  all  the  assistance  in  my  power.  Finding  she  had 
been  bled  before  my  arrival,  without  any  manifest  abate- 
ment of  the  symptoms,  I  repeated  the  operation,  which 
was  aorain  had  recourse  to  in  the  evening,  on  the  arrival 
of  Dr.  Hogg,  an  eminent  physician  of  Nashville,  who 
had  been  sent  for  simultaneously  with  myself.  These 
successive  bleedings,  together  with  other  treatment,  pro- 
duced great  relief,  and  an  entire  subsidence  of  all  the 
alarming  symptoms.     The  three  following  days  she  con- 


300  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

tinued  to  improve ;  she  was  cheerful,  and  could  sit  in 
her  chair  and  converse  with  her  friends.  On  Monday 
night,  however,  she  sat  up  too  long,  caught  cold,  and  had 
slight  symptoms  of  pleurisy.  These  soon  yielded  to  the 
proper  remedies,  a  profuse  perspiration  ensued,  which  it 
was  thought  proper  to  encourage  with  mild,  diluent 
drinks  ;  everything  promised  a  favorable  issue.  In  this 
situation,  after  Dr.  Hogg  and  myself  had  retired  to  an 
adjoining  room,  our  patient  unfortunately  got  up  twice 
and  sat  by  the  fire.  The  perspiration  became  suddenly 
checked.  She  cried  out,  '  I  am  fainting,'  was  placed  in 
bed,  and  in  a  moment  afterwards  she  was  a  lifeless 
corpse ! 

"All  our  efforts  for  her  restoration  were  vain  and  fruit- 
less. No  blood  could  be  obtained  either  from  the  arm 
or  the  temporal  artery.  Sensibility  had  ceased,  life  had 
departed;  and  her  meek  and  quiet  spirit  sought  that 
rest  with  her  God  and  her  Redeemer,  which  a  cruel 
world  refused  to  o-rant. 

"From  a  careful  review  of  the  case,  there  seems  to  be 
no  doubt  but  that  there  was  a  sudden  reflux  of  the  blood 
from  the  surface  and  the  extremities,  upon  the  heart  and 
other  organs,  producing  an  engorgement  and  conse- 
quent spasm  of  that  important  viscus.  That  her  deatli 
is  to  be  attributed  to  this  cause,  rather  than  to  an  effu- 
sion of  the  brain,  seems  to  be  inferable  from  the  fact 
of  the  total  and  instantaneous  cessation  of  the  functions 
of  the  heart.  Not  a  pulsation  could  be  perceived ;  her 
lungs  labored  a  minute  or  two,  and  then  ceased. 


DEATH    AT    THE    HERMITAGE.  30I 

"  How  shall  I  describe  the  agony — the  heart-rending 
agony — of  the  venerable  partner  of  her  bosom?  He 
had,  in  compliance  with  our  earnest  entreaties,  seconded 
by  those  of  his  wife,  left  her  chamber,  which  he  could 
seldom  be  persuaded  to  do,  and  had  lain  down  in  an  ad- 
joining room,  to  seek  repose  for  his  harassed  mind  and 
body.  A  few  minutes  only  had  elapsed,  when  we  were 
hastily  summoned  to  her  chamber;  and  the  General,  in 
a  moment,  followed  us.  But  he  was  only  in  time  to  wit- 
ness the  last  convulsive  effort  of  expiring  nature.  Then 
it  was  that  all  the  feelings  of  the  devoted  husband  burst 
forth.  His  breast  heaved,  and  his  soul  seemed  to 
struggle  with  a  load  too  oppressive  for  frail  humanity. 
Nor  was  he  the  only  mourner  on  this  melancholy  occa- 
sion. A  numerous  train  of  domestics  crowded  around 
the  bed  of  their  beloved  mistress,  and  filled  the  room 
with  their  piercing  cries.  They  could  not  bring  their 
minds  to  a  belief  of  the  painful  reality  that  their  mis- 
tress and  friend,  for  such  indeed  she  \vas,  lay  before  them 
a  lifeless  corpse.  '  Oh !  is  there  no  hope  ? '  was  their 
agonizing  question  ;  and  vainly  would  they  flatter  them- 
selves with  the  belief,  that  perhaps  '  she  was  only  fainting.' 

**  The  distressing  event  spread  with  the  rapidity  of  the 
wind  ;  and  neig-hbors  and  relatives  thronq^ed  the  house 
from  midnight  until  late  the  following  morning.  Soon 
the  painful  tidings  reached  Nashville,  twelve  miles 
distant,  and  a  fresh  concourse  of  friends  pressed  forward 
to  show  their  respect  for  the  dead  and  to  mourn  with 
the  living." 


302  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  23d  December,  while 
active  preparations  for  the  expected  banquet  were 
going  on,  and  many  bright  eyes  and  gay  hearts  were 
already,  in  anticipation,  beginning  the  pleasures  of  the 
day,  the  afflicting  news  reached  the  city,  of  the  Presi- 
dent's unlooked-for  and  terrible  bereavement.  This 
sad  paragraph  appeared  in  the  papers  and  cast  a  gloom 
over  the  breakfast-tables  where  so  many  had  assem- 
bled in  joy.  "  In  the  midst  of  preparations  for  fes- 
tivity and  mirth,  the  knell  of  death  is  heard,  and  on 
the  very  day  which  it  was  arranged  and  expected  that 
our  town  should  be  a  scene  of  general  rejoicing,  we 
are  suddenly  checked  in  our  career,  and  are  called  on  to 
array  ourselves  in  garments  of  solemnity  and  woe. 
Mrs.  Rachel  Jackson,  wife  of  General  Andrew  Jackson, 
President  elect  of  the  United  States,  died  last  night, 
at  the  Hermitage,  in  this  vicinity.  The  intelligence 
of  this  awful  and  unlooked-for  event  has  created  a 
shock  in  our  community  almost  unparalleled.  It  was 
known,  a  few  days  since,  that  Mrs.  Jackson  was  vio- 
lently attacked  by  disease ;  which,  however,  was  sup- 
posed to  have  been  checked,  so  as  to  afford  a  prospect 
of  immediate  restoration  to  health.  This  day,  being 
the  anniversary  of  an  interesting  and  important  event 
in  the  last  war,  was  appropriately  selected  to  testify  the 
respect  and  affection  of  his  fellow-citizens  and  neigh- 
bors to  the  man  who  was  so  soon  to  leave  his  sweet 
domestic  retirement,  to  assume  the  responsibilities  and 
discharge  the  important  duties  of  Chief  INIagistrate  of 


FESTIVITIES    CIVE    PEACE    TO    MOURNING,  303 

the  nation.  The  preparations  were  already  made ;  tlie 
table  was  well-nigh  spread,  at  which  all  was  expected  to 
be  hilarity  and  joy,  and  our  citizens  had  sallied  forth  on 
the  happy  morning  with  spirits  light  and  buoyant,  and 
countenances  glowing  with  animation  and  hope, — 
when  suddenly  the  scene  is  changed,  congratulations 
are  converted  into  expressions  of  condolence,  tears  are 
substituted  for  smiles,  and  sincere  and  greneral  mourn- 
ing  pervades  a  community  where,  but  a  moment  before, 
universal  happiness  and  public  rejoicing  prevailed.  But 
we  have  neither  time  nor  room,  at  present,  to  indulge  in 
further  reflections  on  this  melancholy  occurrence.  Let 
us  submit  with  resignation  and  fortitude  to  the  decrees, 
however  afflicting,  of  a  just  and  merciful,  though 
mysterious  and  inscrutable  Providence." 

The  preparations  making  for  the  festivity  were  im- 
mediately stopped,  upon  the  arrival  of  the  melancholy 
information  ;  and,  in  their  stead,  the  committee  of  ar- 
rangements, together  with  the  Mayor  and  Aldermen  of 
the  city,  recommended  to  the  citizens,  as  an  evidence  of 
their  deep  regret  and  sympathy  for  the  calamity  which 
had  befallen  their  honored  fellow-citizen,  to  suspend  for 
one  day  the  ordinary  business  of  life,  which  was 
cordially  observed.  In  the  course  of  the  morning, 
a  card  eicrht  inches  lono-  and  six  inches  wide,  with  a 
mourning  border  one-third  of  an  inch  in  width,  was 
printed,  containing  the  following  announcement: 

"  The  committee  appointed  by  the  cidzens  of  Nash- 
ville to  superintend  the  reception   of  General  Jackson 


304  RACHEL    JACK-SON. 

on  this  day,  with  feelings  of  deep  regret,  announce 
to  the  public  that  Mrs.  Jackson  departed  this  life  last 
niorht,  between  the  hours  of  ten  and  eleven  o'clock. 

"  Respect  for  the  memory  of  the  deceased,  and  a 
sincere  condolence  with  him  on  whom  this  providential 
affliction  has  fallen,  forbid  the  manifestations  of  public 
regard  intended  for  the  day. 

"In  the  further  consideration  of  the  painful  and  un- 
expected occasion  which  has  brought  them  together, 
the  committee  feel  that  it  is  due  to  the  exemplary 
virtues  and  exalted  character  of  the  deceased,  that  some 
public  token  should  be  given  of  the  high  regard  enter- 
tained towards  her  while  living.  They  have,  therefore, 
resolved, 

"That    it    be     respectfully    recommended     to    their 

fellow-citizens  of  Nashville,  in  evidence  of  this  feeling, 

to  refrain,  on  to-morrow,  from  the  ordinary  pursuits  of 

life. 

"JosiAH  NiciioL,  Chairman. 

"December  23(/." 

The  city  authorities  also  passed  suitable  resolutions, 
the  last  of  which  reads  as  follows: 

"  Resolved,  That  the  inhabitants  of  Nashville  are  re 
spectfully  invited  to  abstain  from  their  ordinary  business 
on  to-morrow,  as  a  mark   of  respect   for   Mrs.  Jackson, 
and  that  the  church  bells  be  tolled  from  one  until  two 
o'clock,  being  the  hour  of  her  funeral." 

These  proceedings  were  signed  by  Felix  Robertson, 
Mayor,  and  attested  by  E.  Dibbrell,  Recorder. 


SEPARATION    AT   THE    IICUR    OF    TRIUMPH.  305 

About  a  fortnight  before  her  death,  she  remarked  to 
a  friend,  that  although  she  had  Hved  with  Mr.  Jackson 
nearly  forty  years,  there  had  never  an  unkind  word 
passed  between  them,  and  the  only  subject  on  which 
they  ever  differed,  or  where  there  was  the  slightest 
opposition,  was  his  acceptance  of  appointments  when 
conferred  upon  him  ;  she  being  always  unwilling  for  him 
to  enter  upon  public  life.  Such  was  the  woman  whom 
General  Jackson  was  called  upon  to  separate  from,  at  a 
moment  of  all  others  the  most  trying. 

Although  the  weather  was  unfavorable,  her  friends 
assembled  from  every  point,  to  pay  the  last  tribute  of 
respect  to  one  who  could  befriend  them  no  more.  Every 
vehicle  in  Nashville,  and  there  were  more  at  that  day 
than  now,  in  proportion  to  the  population,  was  put  i\\ 
requisition.  The  road  to  the  Hermitage  had  not  been 
macadamized,  and  it  was,  consequently,  at  that  season 
of  the  year  almost  impassable ;  yet  an  immense  number 
of  persons  attended  the  funeral. 

When  the  hour  of  interment  drew  near,  the  General, 
who  had  not  left  the  beloved  remains,  was  informed  that 
it  was  time  to  perform  the  last  sad  rites.  The  scene  that 
then  ensued  is  beyond  description.  There  was  no  heart 
that  did  not  ache,  no  eye  that  did  not  weep.  Many  of 
the  officers  present,  who  had  shared  with  the  General 
his  difficulties  and  dangers  ;  who  had  seen  him  in  the 
most  trying  situations ;  who  had  eyed  him  when  his 
gallant  soldiers  were  suffering  for  food  to  sustain  life, 
and  he  unable  to  relieve  them ;  who  had  witnessed  him 


306  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

on  the  battle-field,  when  the  wounded  and  the  dying  were 
brought  before  him,  and  every  muscle  seemed  moved, 
and  his  very  frame  agonized  with  sorrow ;  yet  had  seen 
no  suffering,  however  poignant  or  excessive,  affect  the 
General  like  this  orreat  affliction.  When  he  bade  his 
final  adieu  to  the  last  kindred  lin"k  that  bound  him  to 
earth,  his  Roman  fortitude  seemed  for  a  time  to  be  com- 
pletely overcome.  It  was  a  soul-rending  sight  to  see  an 
old  veteran,  whose  head  was  whitened  by  the  hardships 
he  had  endured  for  his  country,  bending  over  the  lifeless 
form  of  an  affectionate  wife,  whose  death  was  hastened 
by  the  cruelty  of  those  whose  rights  he  had  so  nobly  de- 
fended. By  a  muscular  and  almost  superhuman  effort, 
he  endeavored  to  check  the  current  of  his  grief;  and, 
waving  his  hand  to  the  afflicted  company,  begged  them 
to  weep  no  more.  "I  know,"  said  he,  "  it  is  unmanly, 
but  these  tears  were  due  to  her  virtues.  She  shed 
many  for  me."  But  one  wish  pervaded  the  assembly, 
that  the  individuals  who  had  hastened  this  scene  by  their 
relentless  attacks  on  an  unoffending  woman,  could  be 
brought  ;to  witness  the  saddest  spectacle  that  any  present 
had  ever  !beheld. 

But  they  were  not  there  to  witness  the  effects  of  their 
calumnies.  She  was  dead,  and  they  were  vanquished. 
Ever  after  that  funeral,  his  opponents  complained  that 
his  personal  feelings  were  allowed  to  govern  his  public 
acts,  and  that  to  be  suspected  by  him  of  having  believed 
aught  of  slander  against  his  wife,  was  the  unpardonable 
crime  which  he  never  foro-ave.     Brave  old  Hero !  how 


A    HALLOWED    NAME.  307 

deathless  was  the  feeHnor  which  to  the  latest  hour  of  his  life 
displayed  the  strength  made  manifest  from  its  inception  ! 
Silent  and  grave  he  was  on  the  subject,  but  forgetfulness 
or  indifference  did  not  occasion  such  a  course  of  action, 
as  too  many  found  to  their  sorrow.  A  dangerous  look 
in  his  flashing  eye  satisfied  any  one  of  the  sacred  ground, 
and  few  braved  his  anger  by  recalling  an  unpleasant 
recollection  connected  with  her.  The  inhumanity  of  the 
world  robbed  him  of  his  treasure,  and  darkened  his  life, 
but  while  he  lived  her  name  was  a  hallowed  sound 
breathed  in  the  darkened  recesses  of  his  bruised  and 
lonely  heart,  which  cheered  him  on  to  the  portals  of  the 
tomb  through  which  she  had  passed  to  immortality. 

The  dear  remains  were  interred  in  a  corner  of  the  Her- 
mitage garden  ;  and  thither  the  afflicted  General  was  sup- 
ported by  General  Coffee  and  Major  Rutledge.  The 
following  gentlemen  were  pall-bearers:  Governor  Sam 
Houston,  Col.  Ephraim  H.  Foster,  Col.  George  Wilson, 
Gen.  Robert  Armstrong,  Col,  Sam.  B.  Marshall,  Col. 
Allen,  Mr.  Solomon  Clark,  and  Major  G.  W.  Campbell. 

A  resident  of  Nashville,  writing  to  his  brother  in  Phila- 
delphia, said :  "  Such  a  scene  I  never  wish  to  witness 
again.  I  never  pitied  any  person  more  in  my  life  than 
General  Jackson.  I  never  before  saw  so  much  affliction 
among  servants  on  the  death  of  a  mistress.  Some 
seemed  completely  stupefied  by  the  event;  others  wrung 
their  hands  and  shrieked  aloud.  The  woman  that  had 
waited  on  Mrs.  Jackson  had  to  be  carried  off  the  ground. 
After  the  funeral,  the  General  came  up  to  me  and  shook 


308  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

my  hand.  Some  of  the  gentlemen  mentionnig  my  name, 
he  again  caught  my  hand,  and  squeezed  it  three  times, 
but  all  he  could  utter  was  '  Philadelphia.'  I  shall  never 
foreet  his  look  of  ^rief." 

Through  the  kindness  of  Sarah  Jackson,  the  widow  of 
General  Jackson's  adopted  son,  I  am  in  possession  of  a 
book  compiled  by  Mr.  Earl,  under  the  direction  of  the 
General  himself,  entided  in  gilt  letters  on  the  back, 
"  Obituary  Notices  of  Mrs.  Jackson."  It  contains  the 
funeral  card  before  mentioned;  a  great  number  of 
eulogies  taken  from  the  papers  of  the  day  ;  innumerable 
paragraphs  expressive  of  respect  and  sympathy ;  and  a 
synopsis  of  the  funeral  sermon,  in  manuscript.  It  was 
preached  by  the  Reverend  William  Hume,  of  Nashville, 
and  has  never  heretofore  been  published.  It  will  be 
found  interesting,  not  only  as  the  funeral  discourse  of  so 
eminent  a  lady,  but  as  a  specimen  of  a  sermon  delivered 
forty  years  ago,  in  a  country  so  undeveloped  as  Tennes- 
see was  in  those  days. 

"The  rigliteous  shall  be  in  everlasting  remembrance." 

Psalm  c.xii.,  6th  verse. 

"  These  words  might  be  applied  to  that  venerable 
matron,  with  much  propriety,  as  she  gave  every  reason- 
able evidence  that  she  was  among  the  righteous.  In- 
deed, as  her  name  is  indissolubly  connected  with  that  of 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  it  shall  be  held  in 
remembrance  while  the  page  of  history  displays  the 
memorable  actions  of  General  Jackson.     The  words  of 


TRIBUTE    TO    HER    MEMORY.  3OO 

the  Psalmist,  however,  are  applicable  to  her  in  a  much 
nobler  sense. 

"  The  death  of  this  worthy  lady  is  much  deplored,  not 
only  by  her  distinguished  husband  and  immediate  rela- 
tions, but  by  a  large  majority  of  the  people  of  the 
United  States  of  America.  Her  character  was  so  well 
known  to  multitudes  who  visited  the  Hermitage,  the 
abode  of  hospitality,  that  the  following  remarks  will 
readily  be  acknowledged  as  true : 

"  With  respect  to  her  religious  principles,  they  were 
such  as  are  held  sound  by  all  religious  denominations 
that  are  commonly  called  evangelical  Convinced  of 
the  depravity  of  human  nature,  as  taught  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  she  relied  on  the  Spirit  of  God  alone,  to 
illuminate,  renovate  and  purify  that  nature  that  it  might 
be  qualified  for  the  unspotted  society  of  heaven.  Be- 
lieving with  the  inspired  Paul,  that  by  the  works  of  the 
law,  no  flesh  can  be  justified  in  the  sight  of  God,  her 
dependence  for  eternal  life  was  placed  on  the  merits 
and  mediation  of  Jesus.  Fully  persuaded  that  the  law- 
is  holy  and  the  commandment  holy,  and  tliat  God  will 
not  acquit  the  sinner  from  condemnation,  in  a  way  that 
will  conceal  the  dignity  of  His  government,  the  purity 
of  His  nature,  the  truth  of  His  threatening,  or  the  glory 
of  His  unchangeable  justice,  she  derived  all  her  hope  of 
acceptance  with  God  from  Him  who  'bore  our  sins  in 
His  own  body  on  the  tree;  who  suffered,  the  just  for  the 
unjust,  that  He  might  bring  us  to  God.' 

"While,  however,  her  whole  dependence  for  accept- 


310  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

ance  with  God  was  founded  upon  the  atonement  of  the 
Son  of  God,  through  whom  era-ce  reigns  unto  eternal 
hfe,  she  knew  that  this  doctrine  did  not  tend  to  im- 
morahty.  She  was  taught  by  Paul  that  holiness  is 
always  inseparably  connected  with  this  dependence  on 
the  merits  of  the  Saviour,  and  that  every  motive  to  holi- 
ness arising  from  interest  or  gratitude  or  the  pleasures 
of  religion  remains  in  full  force  ;  she  therefore  abounded 
in  good  works.  Assured  by  the  infallible  testimony  of 
her  Lord  and  Master,  that  every  branch  of  the  true  vine, 
as  it  derives  its  verdure,  beauty,  vigor,  and  sap  from 
the  vine  is  fruitful,  she,  a  genuine  branch,  was  so  too. 
In  acts  of  piety,  as  adoration,  thanksgiving  and  praise, 
she  took  delight.  Her  seat  was  seldom  empty  in  the 
house  of  God.  Though  very  often  surrounded  with 
company  from  every  State  in  the  Union,  neither  she  nor 
her  ilkistrious  husband  neglected  the  house  of  God  on 
that  account.  The  tears  of  genuine  penitence  were 
often  shed  by  her  in  the  temple  of  the  Lord.  She  had 
a  tender  and  a  feelinof  heart,  and  sometimes  I  have  seen 
the  tears  bedewing  her  cheeks  while  she  was  speaking 
of  the  dangerous  condition  of  those  around  her,  who 
seemed  to  be  entirely  careless  about  a  future  state.  In- 
deed, her  devotional  spirit  was  manifest  in  all  her  con- 
duct. She  meditated  on  the  wonders  of  redeeming  love 
wi;b  much  dehght,  as  the  source  of  her  present  joy  and 
futi/e  hope  of  glory.  Indeed,  her  piety  was  acknowl- 
edg'  d  by  all  who  knew  her,  as  it  manifested  itself  by  the 
mosL  unequivocal  proofs;  a  reverential  awe,  a  supreme 


HER    CHARACTER.  3It 

love  and  profound  veneration  for  the  incomparable  ex- 
cellences of  God,  and  a  cordial  gratitude  to  Him  as  the 
source  of  all  her  mercies.  Her  love  to  God  was  dis- 
played by  an  unusual  obedience  to  His  comniands  and 
by  an  humble  submission  to  His  providence. 

"As  a  wife,  connected  with  one  who  stood  so  high  in 
the  estimation  of  his  fellow-citizens,  she  was,  as  a  Chris- 
tian, exposed  to  some  peculiar  temptations;  for  who  can 
resist  the  fascinations  of  honor  and  of  power  ?  While 
she  rejoiced  in  the  honor  of  a  nation  of  freemen  spon- 
taneously given  to  a  husband  so  dear  to  her  heart,  yet 
no  unbecoming  elation  of  mind,  no  haughtiness,  no 
overbearing  conduct,  could  ever  be  seen,  even  by  an 
inimical  eye,  in  this  amiable  lady.  She  was  adorned 
with  the  ornament  of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  in  an 
eminent  degree.  Esteem  and  affection  were  so  mixed 
in  her  bosom  for  her  husband,  that  her  respectful  be- 
havior to  him,  in  her  house  and  among  her  connections 
and  acquaintances,  struck  every  beholder  as  the  soft  im- 
pulse of  the  sweetness  of  her  disposition;  so  that  by  her 
kindness  and  affability,  her  husband  was  more  happy  in 
his  own  family  than  in  the  midst  of  his  triumphs.  In 
consequence  of  her  amiable  manners,  his  own  house  was 
the  chief  place  of  his  enjoyment. 

"The  tears  and  lamentations  of  the  servants  are 
proofs  of  the  most  unequivocal  kind  of  her  excellence 
as  the  mistress  of  her  household.  Never  did  children 
seem  to  mourn  more  sincerely  for  a  mother  than  the 
household  servants  lament  for  her.     The  cordial  recrard 


312  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

of  her  servants  may  well  be  attributed  to  the  g^entleness 
of  her  commands,  the  calmness  of  her  temper,  and  her 
tenderness  in  treating  them  in  health  and  in  sickness. 
She  was,  indeed,  a  mother  to  her  family, 

"  The  widow  and  the  orphan  will  long  lament  the 
death  of  Mrs.  Jackson.  In  the  circle  of  the  widows  and 
orphans  her  benevolence  accompanied  with  the  most 
substantial  acts  of  beneficence,  shone  with  distinguished 
splendor.  To  her  the  words  of  Job  may  be  properly 
applied:  'When  the  ear  heard  her,  then  it  blessed  her; 
and  when  the  eye  saw  her,  it  gave  witness  to  her,  be- 
cause she  delivered  the  poor  that  cried,  and  the  father- 
less, and  him  that  had  none  to  help  him.  The  blessing 
of  him  that  was  ready  to  perish  came  upon  her,  and  she 
caused  the  widow's  heart  to  sing  for  joy.  She  put  on 
righteousness,  and  it  clothed  her.  Her  judgment  was  a 
robe  and  a  diadem.  She  was  eyes  to  the  blind,  and  feet 
to  the  lame,  and  a  mother  to  the  poor.'  Blest  with 
affluence,  she  had  a  heart  to  feel  and  a  hand  to  relieve 
the  poor  and  the  needy.  She  viewed  the  bounties  of 
Providence  not  only  to  refresh  herself  and  her  family, 
but  as  designed  by  her  Benefactor  to  flow  in  channels 
leading  to  the  doors  of  those  who  were  perishing  of 
thirst,  that  they,  also,  might  quaff  and  be  satisfied. 

"  Some,  indeed,  during  the  Presidential  struggle,  with 
unfeeling  hearts  and  unjustifiable  motives,  exerted  all 
their  powers  to  throw  her  numerous  virtues  into  the 
shade.  It  was,  no  doubt,  the  intention  of  the  defamers 
to  arouse  the  indio^nation  of  her  husband  that  he  mieht 


MEEK    AND    LOWLY    OF    HEART.  313 

perpetrate  some  act  to  prevent  his  elevation  to  that  high 
station  to  which  the  American  people  resolved  that  he 
should  be  raised.  Under  this  cruel  treatment  Mrs. 
Jackson  displayed  the  temper  of  a  disciple  of  Him  who 
was  meek  and  lowly  of  heart.  Her  meekness  was  con- 
spicuous under  all  the  injuries  and  provocations  which 
were  designed  to  provoke  and  exasperate  her.  Seldom, 
indeed,  has  the  busy  tongue  of  slander  and  detraction 
been  more  gratuitously  and  basely  employed  ;  never 
was  it  put  to  silence  with  more  helplessness  and  confu- 
sion than  in  the  case  of  this  amiable  and  pious  lady. 
Influenced  by  the  religion  that  she  professed,  she  re- 
strained all  immoderate  sallies  of  passion  and  harsh  lan- 
guage on  that  trying  occasion.  She  felt,  indeed,  the 
injustice  of  the  warfare.  Her  compassionate  heart  was 
wrung  with  sorrow.  Her  tears  flowed,  but  there  was  no 
malevolence  in  her  bosom.  She  could  have  received  no 
pleasure  in  giving  pain  to  her  detractors.  Confiding  in 
God,  that  He  would  bring  forth  her  righteousness  as  the 
light,  and  her  salvation  as  a  lamp  that  burneth,  she  was 
not  disappointed. 

*'  She  was  permitted  to  live  until  the  people  of 
America,  by  their  unbiased  suffrage,  asserted  their  full 
conviction  of  her  innocence  in  a  manner  calculated  to 
shame  and  confound  the  most  furious  and  unprincipled 
of  her  defamers.  Yes,  she  lived  to  see  every  cloud  of 
calumny  blown  away  by  the  united  breath  of  the  Ameri- 
can people;  and  found  herself  and  her  beloved  husband 
in    the    enjoyment  of   an  unclouded   sky,  favored  with 


314  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

the  smiles  and  the  esteem  of  a  people  uninfluenced  by 
detractors  and  qualified  to  form  their  own  opinions. 

"While  we  cordially  sympathize  with  the  President  of 
the  United  States,  in  the  irreparable  loss  he  has  sus- 
tained in  the  death  of  his  amiable  lady,  whom  he 
deemed  so  worthy,  as  he  said,  of  our  tears;  we,  from 
our  long  acquaintance  with  Mrs.  Jackson,  and  our  many 
opportunities  of  seeing  her  virtues  displayed,  cannot 
doubt  but  that  she  now  dwells  in  the  mansions  of  glory 
in  company  with  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord,  singing  the 
praises  of  that  Saviour  whom  she  loved  and  served 
while  she  was  a  pilgrim  on  earth.  In  heaven,  she  drinks 
of  the  pure  stream  of  the  river  of  life,  issuing  from  the 
throne  of  God  and  of  the  Lamb." 

Various  newspapers,  and  among  them,  the  Mei'ciuy 
of  Philadelphia,  clothed  their  columns  in  the  badge  of 
mourning ;  which  was  "  alike  merited,"  says  the  Mer- 
cury, "  by  his  services  and  fame  and  her  virtues  and 
piety." 

The  ladies  of  Abingdon,  Virginia,  met  and  entered 
into  resolutions  to  transmit  to  General  Jackson  a  letter 
"assuring  him  of  the  sincere  regard  they  bore  the  char- 
acter and  person  of  his  deceased  lady,  and  the  sorrow 
they  feel  at  his  afflictive  bereavement,"  and  also  to  wear 
mourning  badges  on  their  dresses  for  thirty  days.  The 
following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  of  condolence  to  General 
Jackson : 

"Jamtary  e,th,  1829. 

"  Dear  Sir  :  We  have  heard,  with  the  deepest  sorrow, 


LEITER   OF    CONDOLENCE.  315 

of  yonr  late  afflictive  bereavement  in  the  death  of  your 
truly  pious  and  amiable  wife;  and  we  have  met  to  mingle 
our  tears  with  yours  for  the  irreparable  loss  you  have 
sustained.  To  weep  on  such  an  occasion  is  not  blamable; 
it  is  but  a  becoming  tribute  to  departed  worth ;  yet,  at 
the  same  time,  we  should  bow  with  submission  to  the  will 
of  Him  who  '  gives  and  who  takes  away  at  his  pleasure.* 
She  has  gone,  we  trust,  to  those  mansions  'where  the 
wicked  cease  from  troubling  and  the  weary  are  at  rest,' 
where  the  voice  of  malice  cannot  reach  her  or  the  tonofue 
of  calumny  disturb  her. 

"On  such  an  occasion,  when  religion  is  deprived  of 
one  of  its  brightest  ornaments,  and  society  of  one  of  its 
most  valuable  members,  we  consider  it  our  duty  to  offer 
to  her  memory  the  tribute  of  esteem  which  is  due  to  her 
worth  ;  and  to  give  you.  Sir,  our  sincerest  condolence  for 
this  late  afflictive  dispensation.  At  the  same  time,  we 
offer  our  fervent  prayer  to  the  Almighty  disposer  of 
human  events,  that  your  administration  of  the  high 
office  to  which  you  have  lately  been  elected  may  be  as 
wise  and  happy  as  your  military  career  was  brilliant  and 
successful. 

"Sarah  P.  Preston." 

This  effusion  expressive  of  womanly  feeling  does  in- 
finite credit  to  the  highly  esteemed  authoress.  She  was 
a  daughter  of  General  William  Campbell,  who  so  glori- 
ously commanded  the  Virginia  militia,  and  afterwards  a 
gallant  corps  in  the  battle  of  Guilford  Court  House,  who, 


31 6  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

in  the  lancruaofe  of  the  historian,  were  "  the  first  enofaored 
and  the  last  to  quit." 

The  Board  of  Mayor  and  Aldermen  of  Knoxville, 
Tennessee,  unanimously  adopted  a  preamble  and  resolu- 
tions in  regard  to  the  death  of  Mrs.  Jackson.  Joseph 
C.  Strong  was  Mayor,  and  William  Swan,  Recorder. 
Colonel  Jacobs  offered  the  paper,  and  we  annex  the 
resolutions : 

"Resolved,  That  while  we  deeply  regret  the  death  of 
Mrs.  Jackson,  we  cannot  but  express  our  gratitude  to 
the  Supreme  Governor  of  the  universe,  that  she  was  not 
taken  from  time  to  eternity  until  the  people  of  the  Union 
had  Q-iven  a  clear  and  distinct  manifestation  of  the  hioh 
estimation  in  which  they  held  the  reputation  of  herself 
and  husband. 

"Resolved,  That  in  consequence  of  the  death  of  Mrs. 
Jackson,  the  Mayor  be  directed  to  request  the  Rev. 
Thomas  H.  Nelson  to  preach  a  sermon  suitable  to  the 
occasion,  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  at  eleven 
o'clock  A.  i\i.,  on  Thursday,  the  first  day  of  January  next, 

"  Resolved,  That  the  inhabitants  of  Knoxville  be  re- 
spectfully requested  to  attend  church,  and  abstain  from 
their  ordinary  business  on  Thursday,  the  first  day  of 
January  next,  as  a  tribute  of  respect  to  the  memory  of 
the  deceased.     Dec.  29th,  1828." 

In  accordance  with  the  request  contained  in  the  second 
resolution,  the  Reverend  Thomas  H.  Nelson  preached 
a  funeral  sermon  on  Thursday  the  first  day  of  January, 
1829. 


TKlliUTES    OF    RESPECT.  317 

The  Common  Council  of  tlie  city  of  New  York  passed 
resolutions  of  condolence  to  mark  their  "  deference  for 
her  domestic  virtues,  her  benevolence  and  her  piety," 
An  authenticated  copy  of  these  resolutions  was  forwarded 
to  General  Jackson. 

A  public  gathering  assembled  at  the  Vine  Street 
Meeting-  House,  Cincinnati,  Ohio ;  at  which  a  very 
large  committee  was  appointed  to  draft  resolutions 
which  they  did,  in  honor  of  "  a  lady  in  whom  by  uni- 
versal consent,  the  practical  charities  of  the  heart  were 
gracefully  blended  with  the  purest  and  most  unaffected 
piety." 

On  the  8th  of  January,  throughout  the  country,  instead 
of  the  customary  firing  of  cannon  commemorative  of  the 
day,  a  solemn  silence  was  maintained,  as  a  token  of  re- 
spect for  the  deceased.  At  various  public  dinners  on 
that  day,  Mrs.  Jackson's  death  was  alluded  to  in  the  most 
gentle  and  sympathetic  terms.  As  an  illustration  of  the 
tone  and  spirit  of  these  allusions,  we  copy  the  following. 
At  Boston,  this  toast  was  offered  by  S.  Fessenden,  Esq. : 
"The  memory  of  Mrs.  Jackson — sadness  to  our  joy,  but 
for  the  bright  hope  that  the  event  which  hath  wrought 
for  him  whose  praise  we  celebrate  a  cypress  chaplet, 
hath  introduced  her  whose  memory  we  revere  and  whose 
death  we  deplore,  to  a  crown  of  unfading  glory." 

In  New  Orleans  the  following  toast  was  offered:  "The 
memory  of  Mrs.  Jackson — an  example  of  piety,  benevo- 
•ence,  and  every  Christian  virtue.  'The  only  amaran- 
thine flower  on  earth  is  virtue.'  " 


3l8  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

In  Nashville,  Captain  Parrish  presented  this — "The 
memory  of  Mrs.  Jackson." 

In  Harrisburg,  Pennsylvania,  at  the  celebration  of  the 
members  of  the  Legislature,  the  following  toast  was 
drunk: — "The  memory  of  Mrs.  Jackson — the  amiable 
wife  of  the  slandered  hero.  The  grave  now  shrouds  her 
mortal  remains,  but  her  virtues  will  shine  in  brilliant 
purity,  when  her  unprincipled  slanderers  are  lost  to  the 
memory  of  man." 

A  touching  reference  to  the  sad  event  was  made  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  by  the  Hon.  Pryor  Lea, 
of  the  Tennessee  Delegation. 

And  so  hundreds  of  pages  of  eulogies  published  in 
every  section  of  the  Republic  might  be  copied. 

Many  pieces  of  poetry  mourning  the  death  of  Mrs. 
Jackson  appeared  in  the  papers,  one  of  which,  from  the 
Cincinnati  Advertiser,  is  subjoined : 

MONODY 

ON   THE   DEATH   OF   MRS.   JACKSON. 

"As  wintry  blasts  succeed  the  summer's  bloom, 
And  summer  suns  give  place  to  winter's  gloom; 
As  to  morn's  radiance  o'er  creation  spread, 
The  night  succeeds,  when  every  ray  is  fled; 
Or  as  the  heart,  but  erst  with  joy  elate, 
To  sorrow  turns  beneath  some  stroke  of  fate ; 
So  a  joy'd  nation  Fate  has  bid  to  turn 
Its  smiles  of  joy  to  tears  o'er  Virtue's  urn. 
Sacred  the  numbers  breathed  in  Virtue's  name, 
Dear  still  to  goodness,  if  unknown  to  fame. 
Be  thine  the  grateful  task,  O  humble  muse 
(Virtue's  thy  theme,  and  thou  canst  ne'er  refuse), 


MONODY.  3 1 9 


Be  thine  the  task  that  gootlness  to  deplore, 
Which  Death,  relentless,  bids  to  be  no  more; 
To  sing  th'  unspotted  life,  unknown  to  blame. 
But  every  virtue  dear  to  woman's  name ; 
The  meek-eyed  charity,  the  guileless  heart. 
The  long  enduring  under  sorrow's  smart ; 
The  ready  friend  to  comfort  in  distress; 
The  hand  as  willing  as  the  heart  to  bless; 
The  every  charm  exalted  virtue  lends, 
Conferring  blessings  as  its  means  extends ; 
The  mind  sincere,  unknown  to  pious  guile ; 
Which  ne'er  deceit,  dishonest,  could  defile. 
But  still  intent  religion  to  obey, 
And  as  she  taught  its  precepts,  led  the  way; 
To  all  its  active  impulses  awake, 
And  virtuous  only  for  fair  virtue's  sake. 

•*  Scarce  was  the  contest  o'er,  the  victory  won, 
Mysterious  Fate  !     But  half  thy  will  was  done. 
From  that  first  hour  a  nation  made  its  choice 
Of  him  in  whose  great  name  its  sons  rejoice. 
From  the  first  hour  the  grateful  news  was  hailed, 
Even  from  that  hour  her  gentle  spirit  failed. 
While  o'er  the  land  loud  peals  of  triumph  rang. 
Her  milder  nature  felt  the  mortal  pang 
Which  still  protracted,  nought  availed  to  save 
Her  suffering  nature  from  an  honored  grave. 

«•  Eternal  Providence  !     Whate'er  thy  ways, 
'Tis  siill  our  duty  to  adore  and  praise. 
Lo,  the  bright  virtues  from  her  earliest  time. 
Which  souls  ungenerous  slandered  into  crime. 
Lo,  her  loved  husband's  fame,  by  foes  assailed. 
Impotent  still.     And  while  each  effort  failed. 
Behold  them  turn  with  most  dishonest  arts. 
Against  domestic  Peace  their  venomed  darts. 
Nor  sex,  nor  purity,  nor  honored  age 
Could  save  them  from  the  shafts  of  blinded  rage. 


320  RACHEL    JACKSON. 

Yet  she  but  lived  to  triumph  and  to  see 

Her  fame  proved  pure  as  'twas  designed  to  be, 

When  Nature,  in  her  great  and  liigh  l^ehest, 

Formed,  of  her  daughters,  her  among  the  best. 

Yet  shall  her  cherished  memory  long  endure, 

To  still  assuage  the  grief  it  may  not  cure. 

As  when  the  glorious  sun  retires  to  rest, 

He  leaves  a  golden  twilight  in  the  west, 

Where  the  mild  radiance  of  his  thousand  rays 

Illumes  the  skies  and  gladdens  every  gaze; 

So  the  remembrance  of  her  virtues  dear 

Shall  o'er  the  hearts  of  those  who  loved  her  here 

Shed  the  mild  radiance  of  that  tranquil  joy. 

Which  death,  nor  fate,  nor  ill  can  e'er  destroy." 

Until  a  few  days  before  his  death,  the  General  wore 
always  around  his  neck  and  hidden  in  his  bosom  a  min- 
iature of  Mrs.  Jackson,  on  the  back  of  which  is  a  pretty 
little  wreath  made  of  his  and  her  hair.  The  chain  to 
which  it  is  attached  is  curiously  wrought  of  black  beads 
interminofled  with  a  flower-work  of  briorht  eold  ones,  into 
which  these  words  are  skilfully  introduced :  "  Presented 
to  General  Andrew  Jackson  as  a  token  of  esteem,  from 
Caledonia  M.  Gibson.  May  blessings  crown  thy  hoary 
head."  Every  night  he  placed  this  miniature  on  a  little 
table  by  his  bedside,  leaning  against  his  Bible,  with  the 
beloved  face  towards  him,  so  that  the  kind,  familiar  smile 
should  be  his  first  orreetinor  when  he  waked.  His  erand- 
daughter,  now  Mrs.  Lawrence,  bears  the  honored  name 
of  his  wife,  Rachel  Jackson,  and  was  an  especial  favorite 
of  his.  His  eyes  were  often  fixed  upon  her  during  his 
last  illness  with  peculiar  interest  and  affection.  One 
morning  within  a  few  days  of  his  death,  when  she  came 


THE    TOMB    AT    THE    HERMITAGE.  32 1 

to  bid  him  good-bye,  before  starting  to  the  city  to 
school,  he  threw  the  chain  around  her  neck  and  asked 
her  to  wear,  for  his  sake,  the  miniature  he  had  loved  and 
worn  so  long. 

In  a  corner  of  the  cfarden  at  the  Hermitasfe  there  is  a 
simple  elegant  monument  raised  over  the  vault  in 
which  lie  the  remains  of  General  Jackson  and  his  wife. 
The  steps  run  around  the  circular  area,  eighteen  feet 
across.  From  this  platform  spring  eight  fluted  columns 
of  the  Doric  order,  surmounted  by  a  handsome  entabla- 
ture supporting  the  dome,  which  is  crowned  with  a  fu- 
nereal urn.  On  the  interior,  a  plain  cornice  of  vaulted 
ceiling,  stuccoed  in  white,  gives  an  air  of  purity  and 
comeliness,  well  suited  to  a  tomb.  From  the  centre  of 
the  platform  rises  a  pyramid  on  a  square  base.  On  the 
floor,  on  each  side  of  this  pyramid,  lie  the  tablets  which 
contain  the  inscriptions.  The  one  on  the  left  is  the 
General's,  which  bears  only  his  name,  and  the  record  of 
his  birth  and  death.  The  hand  of  an  undying  affection 
has  covered  the  other  with  a  long  and  tender  testimony 
to  her  worth.     It  runs  thus  : 

"  Here  lie  the  remains  of  Mrs.  Rachel  Jackson,  wife 
of  President  Jackson,  who  died  the  2 2d  of  December, 
1828,  aged  61.  Her  face  was  fair,  her  person  pleasing, 
her  temper  amiable,  and  her  heart  kind ;  she  delighted 
in  relievinor  the  wants  of  her  fellow-creatures,  and  cul- 
tivated  that  divine  pleasure  by  the  most  liberal  and  un- 
pretending methods  ;  to  the  poor  she  was  a  benefactor, 
to  the  rich  an  example;  to  the  wretched  a  comforter,  to 


322  RACHEL   JACKSON. 

the  prosperous  an  ornament ;  her  piety  went  hand  In 
hand  with  her  benevolence,  and  she  thanked  her  Creator 
for  being  permitted  to  do  good.  A  being  so  gentle  and 
yet  so  virtuous,  slander  might  wound  but  could  not  dis- 
honor. Even  death,  when  he  tore  her  from  the  arms  of 
her  husband,  could  but  transport  her  to  the  bosom  of 
her  God." 

Here  in  the  freshness  and  greenness  of  the  garden 
they  planted,  surrounded  with  climbing  vines  and  fra- 
grant blooms,  the  General  and  his  beloved  wife  sleep 
their  last  sweet  sleep.  Across  a  garden  path  lie  the 
remains  of  Mr.  Earl,  the  artist,  "  friend  and  companion 
of  General  Andrew  Jackson."  Beside  him  lies  Andrew 
Jackson,  the  adopted  son  of  the  General ;  and  near  are 
two  of  his  infant  sons,  and  a  grown  son,  Samuel,  who 
fell  in  batde. 

General  Jackson  survived  his  wife  more  than  sixteen 
years,  and,  unto  the  end,  his  love  for  her  burned  as 
brightly  as  in  the  hey-day  of  his  youth.  Though  aged 
and  suffering  greatly,  he  was  remarkably  energetic  and 
kept  up  his  correspondence  with  his  old  and  dear  friends. 
The  last  letter  that  he  ever  wrote,  only  two  days  before 
his  death,  was  addressed  to  the  Hon.  Mr.  Polk,  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  expressing  confidence  in  his 
judgment  and  ability  to  guard  well  and  truly  the  in- 
terests of  his  country. 


VIIL 

EMILY    DONELSON. 

Mrs.  Emtly  Donelson,  the  accomplished  mistress  of 
the  White  House  during  General  Jackson's  Presidential 
term,  was  the  youngest  child  of  Captain  John  Donelson, 
a  man  of  sterling  integrity  and  irreproachable  character, 
perfect  in  all  the  relations  of  life,  respected  as  a  citizen, 
honored  as  a  Christian,  and  beloved  as  a  friend  and 
neighbor.  She  was  born  in  Davidson  County,  Tennes- 
see, and  educated  at  the  Old  Academy,  in  Nashville.  Of 
rare  personal  loveliness  and  superior  intellect,  no  expense 
or  care  was  spared  to  fit  her  for  the  high  position  she 
was  destined  to  fill  in  society.  Though  her  childhood 
was  spent  in  what  was  then  called  the  ''backwoods,"  it 
was  not  passed  in  obscurity,  for  her  close  relationship 
\/ith  Mrs.  Jackson,  the  public  prominence  of  her  near 
relations,  Generals  Smith,  Coffee,  and  Hayes,  and  the 
^^reat  wealth  and  high  standing  of  her  father,  early  made 
her  familiar  with  camps  and  crowds,  and  developed  that 
courtly  grace  and  ease  of  manner  for  which  she  was 
afterwards  so  pre-eminent.  A  host  of  suitors  contended 
for  the  beautiful  maiden's  hand,  among  whom  were  Gen- 
eral Sam  Houston,  Col.  Ephraim  H.  Foster,  and 
Major  Gustavus  A,  Henry  ;  they  always  spoke  of  her 
as  the  "lovely  Emily,"  and  delighted  in  expatiating  on 
the  charms  of  her  mind  and  person. 

(323) 


324  EMILY    DONELSON. 

At  the  early  age  of  sixteen  she  was  married  to  her 
cousin,  Major  Andrew  J.  Donelson,  the  protege  and  con- 
fidential adviser  of  General  Jackson.  She  was  ever  a 
fond  and  faithful  wife,  sharing  the  joys  and  triumphs  of 
her  husband,  relieving  his  cares  and  sorrows,  filling  his 
home  with  peace  and  comfort,  and  his  heart  with  happiness. 

On  General  Jackson's  election  to  the  Presidency,  he 
appointed  Major  Donelson  his  private  Secretary,  and 
invited  Mrs.  Donelson  to  officiate  as  mistress  of  cere- 
monies at  the  Executive  Mansion. 

To  settle  a  delicate  question  of  precedence  between 
Mrs.  Jackson,  jr.,  and  Mrs.  Donelson,  who  were  both  in- 
mates of  the  President's  House  and  nieces  of  General 
Jackson,  he  said  to  Mrs.  Jackson,  "You,  my  dear,  are 
mistress  of  the  Hermitage,  and  Emily  is  hostess  of  the 
White  House."  Both  were  satisfied  with  this  decision, 
and  ever  afterward  Mrs.  Donelson  occupied  the  first 
position  in  the  President's  Mansion.  This  was  a  posi- 
tion that  the  elegance  and  refinement  of  the  former  mis- 
tresses of  the  mansion  had  invested  with  great  respect  ; 
and  Mrs.  Donelson  filled  it  as  they  had  done,  ever 
mindful  of  her  dignity  as  a  lady,  and  true  to  her  duty  as 
a  wife  and  mother.  In  all  that  is  lovely  and  noble  in 
woman,  she  was  the  peer  of  her  illustrious  predecessors; 
and  her  tact  and  grace  contributed  much  to  render  Gen- 
eral Jackson's  term  such  a  brilliant  epoch  in  American 
history.  It  was  a  day  of  fierce  party  spirit ;  political  ani- 
mosity spared  neither  sex  nor  condidon,  yet  the  voice  of 
detraction  was  never  raised  against  her  honored  name. 
Friend  and  foe  alike  paid  homage  to  her  charms. 


GENERAL   JACKSON's    DEFERENCE.  325 

Mrs.  Donelson  was  of  medium  height,  with  dark 
auburn  hair,  dark  brown  eyes,  fair  complexion,  hps  and 
brow  exquisitely  moulded,  slender  symmetrical  figure, 
and  hands  and  feet  tiny  as  a  child's.  Her  portrait  bears 
a  striking  resemblance  to  the  pictures  of  Mary  Queen 
of  Scots.  No  stranger  ever  passes  it  without  comment- 
ing on  its  singular  fascination.  Young,  fond  of  society 
and  pleased  with  attention,  she  entered  with  zest  into 
the  festivities  of  Washington,  and  participated  in  all  its 
gayeties.  Her  taste  in  dress  was  exquisite,  and  her 
toilette  was  the  envy  and  admiration  of  fashionable 
circles.  The  dress  she  wore  at  the  first  inauofuration, 
an  amber-colored  satin,  brocaded  with  bouquets  of  rose- 
buds and  violets,  and  richly  trimmed  with  white  lace  and 
pearls,  was  a  present  from  the  General,  and  was  de- 
scribed in  every  paper  of  the  Union.  It  is  still  pre- 
served in  the  family,  and  even  in  this  day  of  costly  attire, 
would  be  a  gala  dress.  Beloved  as  a  daughter  by  Mrs. 
Jackson,  and  intimately  associated  with  her  for  years,  she 
was  beside  that  honored  and  dear  friend  at  the  time  of 
her  death ;  and  her  tenderness  and  sympathy  did  much 
to  mitigate  the  poignancy  of  the  General's  bereavement- 
He  always  called  her  "  my  daughter;"  and  often  when 
Wearied  with  the  cares  of  office,  would  seek  relaxation 
amid  her  family  circle.  Arbiter  in  politics,  he  deferred 
all  matters  of  etiquette  to  her;  and  when  she  would 
appeal  to  him  to  settle  any  knotty  social  point,  he  would 
reply,  "You  know  best,  my  dear.  Do  as  you  please." 
Of  lively  imagination,  she  was  quick  at  repartee,  and  had 


326  EMILY    DONELSON. 

that  gift  possessed  by  so  few  talkers,  of  listening  grace- 
fully. Thrown  in  contact  with  the  brightest  and  most 
cultivated  intellects  of  the  day,  she  sustained  her  part ; 
and  her  favor  was  eagerly  sought  by  the  learned  and 
polished.  A  foreign  minister  once  said  to  her,  "Madam, 
you  dance  with  the  grace  of  a  Parisian.  I  can  hardly 
realize  you  were  educated  in  Tennessee."  "Count,  you 
forget,"  was  the  spirited  reply,  "  that  grace  is  a  cos- 
mopolite, and  like  a  wild  flower,  is  much  oftener  found 
in  the  woods  than  in  the  streets  of  a  city." 

During  the  Eaton  controversy,  the  public  was  curious 
to  see  what  course  she  would  take.  Her  friends  were 
also  Mrs.  Eaton's  friends,  it  was  her  policy  to  please 
General  Jackson,  and  General  Jackson's  heart  was  set 
on  Mrs.  Eaton's  social  recognition.  At  the  public  re- 
ceptions and  levees,  she  received  Mrs.  Eaton  with  her 
usual  dignity  and  courtesy;  but  when  the  General  asked 
her  to  visit  that  lady,  and  set  the  example  of  public 
recognition  of  his  favorite,  she  refused  decidedly,  saying, 
"Uncle,  I  will  do  anything  on  earth  for  you,  consistent 
with  my  dignity  as  a  lady,  but  I  cannot  and  will  not  visit 
any  one  of  Mrs.  Eaton's  reputation."  She  carried  her 
point,  and  the  President  never  alluded  to  the  distasteful 
subject  again  in  her  presence.* 

Mrs.  Donelson's  four  children  Avere  all  born  at  the 
White   House,  and   their  earliest  reminiscences  are  of 

*  Mr.  EatCHi  was  the  Secretary  of  War,  and  Mrs.  Eaton,  with  who>ie  name  scanrfal 
was  rife,  was  ignoreil  by  the  wives  of  the  Cabinet  ofiftcers  as  well  as  by  the  ger.erah'ly 
of  ladies  in  Washington.  The  Secretary  was  an  old  and  intimate  friend  of  tlie 
President's,  and  his  sympathy  was  enlisted  on  Mrs.  Eaton's  side  of  the  quarrel,  but 
without  avail,  so  far  as  securing  her  social  recognition  was  concerned. 


THE    FAMILY    GROUP.  327 

the  East  Room,  levees,  state  dinners,  and  processions. 
General  Jackson  made  their  christenings  occasions  of 
great  ceremony.  He  was  god- father  of  two  of  them, 
Mr.  Van  Buren  of  another,  and  General  Polk  of  the 
youngest.  General  Jackson  was  very  fond  of  these  little 
ones,  and  took  a  grandfather's  interest  in  all  their  plays 
and  games.  The  White  House  has  probably  never  had 
a  more  charming  tableau  than  that  presented  by  the  old 
hero,  surrounded  by  the  lovely  family  group,  of  which  he 
was  the  soul  and  idol.  Of  Mrs.  Donelson's  children, 
only  her  two  daughters  are  now  living.  Her  two  sons 
passed  away  in  the  spring-time  of  life.  They  were 
young  men  of  great  promise,  superior  intellect,  and  high 
social  standing.  Andrew,  the  eldest,  was  captain  of 
engineers  in  the  United  States  army,  and  died  of  con- 
sumption in  1859.  John  was  captain  in  the  Confederate 
service,  and  fell  in  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  fighting 
bravely  in  defence  of  the  cause  he  had  espoused. 

In  the  spring  of  1836,  Mrs.  Donelson's  health  became 
so  delicate  that  she  concluded  to  leave  Washington  and 
go  home  to  Tennessee,  hoping,  in  the  quiet  and  seclusion 
of  her  beautiful  home  (Tulip  Grove)  soon  to  regain  her 
health  and  strength.  But  her  symptoms  grew  more 
alarming,  and  it  soon  became  evident  that  consumption 
had  marked  her  for  its  victim.  The  scene  chanores  now 
from  the  gay  festivities  of  Washington  to  the  loneliness 
and  sufferinqr  of  the  sick-room.  The  hectic  flush  and 
wasting  form  marked  the  rapid  progress  of  the  insidious 
disease,  and  thou crhts  of  death  became  familiar.    Thouq^h 


•^ — ^.  — . ^^^^.,,^  ,^ ..*..     »  —  ^.^. 


328  EMILY    DONELSON. 

SO  young-  and  gay,  she  bore  her  suffering  with  the  patience 
and  fortitude  of  an  angel,  and  submitted  without  a  mur- 
mur to  the  decree  that  tore  her  away  from  husband,  chil- 
dren and  friends.  Shortly  before  her  death,  she  made  a 
public  profession  of  religion,  and  connected  herself  with 
the  Presbyterian  Church.  Every  resource  of  medical 
skill  and  experience  was  tried  to  stay  the  course  of  her 
disease,  but  in  vain  ;  and  in  December  her  spirit  passed 
from  earth.  Her  death  was  as  peaceful  and  hopeful  as 
her  life  had  been  loving  and  happy.  Always  a  fond  and 
proud  mother,  as  the  time  drew  near  for  a  final  separa- 
tion from  her  children,  she  clung  to  them  with  a  tender- 
ness and  devotion  touchinof  to  behold.  A  few  evenincrg 
before  her  death,  she  was  sitting  at  an  open  window, 
admiring  the  beauty  of  a  winter  sunset,  when  a  bird 
entered,  and  flying  several  times  around  the  room, 
alighted  on  her  chair.  One  of  her  little  children,  playing 
by  her  side,  made  some  exclamation  and  tried  to  catch 
it.  "  Don't  disturb  it,  darling,"  said  the  dying  mother, 
"  maybe  it  comes  to  bid  me  prepare  for  my  flight  to 
another  world.  I  leave  you  here,  but  the  Heavenly 
Father,  who  shelters  and  provides  for  this  poor  little  bird 
this  wintry  day,  will  also  watch  over  and  take  care  of  you 
all  when  I  am  eone.  Don't  forget  mamma ;  love  her 
always,  and  try  to  live  so  that  we  may  all  meet  again  in 
heaven."  Ere  the  week  closed,  her  chair  was  vacant  ; 
earth  had  lost  one  of  its  noblest,  purest  spirits,  but 
heaven  had  chained  an  aneel. 

"  Lovely,  bright,  youthful,  chaste  as  morning  dew. 
She  sparkled,  was  exhaled  and  went  to  heaven." 


IX. 

SARAH     YORKE    JACKSON. 

The  wife  of  President  Jackson's  foster-son  was  the 
daughter  of  Peter  Yorke,  of  Philadelphia,  whose  grand- 
father, Judge  Yorke,  held  an  appointment  under  the  crown 
of  Great  Britain  prior  to  the  Revolution.  She  was  edu- 
cated in  that  city,  and  received  all  the  accomplishments 
a  mind  of  superior  order  under  similar  fortunate  circum- 
stances would  be  capable  of  appreciating.  Left  an 
orphan  at  an  early  age,  her  affections  were  concentrated 
upon  those  nearest  of  kin  to  her,  and  well  and  nobly  has 
she  fulfilled  all  the  requirements  of  sisterly  love.  A  large 
circle  of  friends  and  relatives  rendered  her  young  life 
happy  by  their  sympathy  and  affection,  and  her  youth 
is  remembered  as  a  scene  of  varied  though  ceaseless 
pleasures. 

Miss  Yorke  was  married  to  Mr.  Jackson  soon  after 
the  inaurjuration  of  his  adopted  father,  and  made  her 
entree  at  the  White  House  as  a  bride.  Necessarily  the 
object  of  remark  and  criticism,  which  has  not  generally  a 
tendency  to  promote  ease  of  manner,  she  yet  managed 
to  win  sincere  admiration  from  all  who  came  in  contact 
with  her.  Seldom  has  any  one  in  so  conspicuous  a  posi- 
tion exhibited  so  much  of  the  perfect  self-possession 
which  distinguishes  the  lady  "  to  the  manor  born."     She 

combined  the  opposite  qualities  of  dignity  and  affability, 

(329) 


330  SARAH    YORKE    JACKSON. 

and  secured  thereby  a  lasting  Influence  over  those  with 
whom  she  was  associated.  Blending  a  quick  temper  and 
high  spirits  with  much  kindliness  of  heart,  she  was,  as  is 
often  the  case  with  such  natures,  ofenerous  and  forbearlnsf 
toward  loved  ones — determined  and  unyielding  where 
her  rights  were  Invaded.  Her  affection  for  her  father- 
in-law  was  Intense,  and  he  often  testified  his  love  for 
her. 

On  one  occasion,  when  receiving  a  deputation  from 
the  Keystone  State,  he  remarked  to  them,  "Gentlemen, 
I  am  very  glad  to  see  you,  for  1  am  much  Indebted  to 
Pennsylvania.  She  has  given  me  a  daughter  who  is  a 
o-reat  comfort  to  her  father." 

o 

The  tone  and  impressive  manner  convinced  his  hearers 
of  the  entire  truth  of  his  remark,  while  the  look  of  affec- 
tionate pride  bestowed  upon  her  filled  her  heart  wdth 
happiness. 

At  the  White  House  she  shared  the  honors  of  hostess 
with  her  kinswoman,  Mrs.  Doiielson,  whose  superior 
charms  were  gracefully  acknowledged  by  Mrs.  Jackson, 
and  acted  In  accordance  with  the  President's  suQfQfestlon 
to  remain  as  the  mistress  of  his  own  home. 

During  the  long  period  of  ill  health  which  accom- 
panied the  declining  years  of  General  Jackson,  she 
ministered  to  him  as  only  a  loving  woman  can.  Never 
for  a  moment  was  her  watchful  care  withdrawn,  but 
leaving  all  other  duties,  she  devoted  herself  to  his 
comfort. 

The  crowds  of  company  which  flocked  to  the  Hermit- 


DOMESTIC    PURSUITS.  33 1 

age  were  always  smilingly  received  by  her,  and  her 
name  was  dear  to  all  who  enjoyed  die  hospitality  of  the 
home  of  old  Hickory.  After  the  death  of  Mrs.  Donel- 
son  and  the  failing  health  of  her  father,  her  task  was  one 
of  severity,  but  the  method  and  order  which  reigned  in 
and  about  her  home — the  attention  she  bestowed  upon 
her  children,  and  the  manner  in  which  she  cared  for  the 
dependent  ones  about  her,  attest  her  strong  Christian 
character,  and  convince  us  that  her  success  was  entire. 
Hospitality  at  the  Hermitage  was  taxed  in  a  scarcely 
less  degree  than  Monticello  had  once  been,  and  for  many 
years  Mrs.  Jackson  received  the  world's  votaries  at  the 
shrine  of  greatness. 

In  addition  to  all  this,  there  was  a  never  ccasine  de- 
mand  on  Iier  time  and  brain  for  the  welfare  of  her 
numerous  dependents.  She  was  a  true  friend  to  the 
slaves  of  the  family,  and  the  many  helpless  ones  always 
seen  on  a  large  plantation  were  her  special  property. 
The  wants  of  the  sick,  the  control  of  the  young  and  the 
management  of  all,  was  a  task  only  appreciated  by  those 
accustomed  to  an  institution  now  extinct.  On  Sabbath 
evenings,  for  many  years,  it  was  her  habit  to  have  all 
who  would  choose  to  [rather  around,  to  hear  her  read 
of  eternal  life,  and  to  instruct  the  children  in  reliijious 
duties. 

Called  to  pass  through  great  afflictions  —  to  part 
with  father  and  husband,  and  later  to  mourn  the  loss  of 
a  son  in  his  early  manhood,  whose  life  was  just  budding 
into  promise  of  future  usefulness,  her  sorrows  rest  now 


332  SARAH    YORKE   JACKSON. 

in  her  dcclininc;  years  heavily  upon  her.  Her  grief  is 
sacred. 

During  the  civil  war,  whose  earliest  tocsin  was  sounded 
near  her,  and  whose  dying  echoes  reverberated  along 
the  banks  of  the  Cumberland,  she  remained  in  the  lonely 
home  of  her  happier  youth,  amid  scenes  which  continu- 
ally recall  the  unreturning  past.  In  the  quiet  of  a  win- 
ter's night,  or  even  amid  the  beauty  of  a  midsummer's 
day,  she  looks  upon  the  tomb  in  the  garden,  and  hallowed 
recollections  fill  her  heart.  Through  the  triumphs  of  life 
she  has  passed,  and  now  in  the  eventide  sits  beside  her 
eraves.'^ 

Now,  as  in  early  youth,  she  evinces  her  submission 
to  the  will  of  God,  and  the  little  church  adjoining  the 
Hermitage  is  as  sacred  to  her  as  it  was  dear  to  her 
adopted  mother. 

In  her  present  redrement  with  her  children,  of  whom 
two  remain  to  bless  her  evening  of  life,  and  grandchil- 
dren to  cheer  her  with  their  innocent  gayety,  let  us  hope 
that  further  trials  may  be  spared  her,  and  that  even  to 
the  end  shq  may  enjoy  the  sweet  security  of  a  promise 
made  to  those  like  her,  who  have  finished  their  course, 
and  are  called  to  enter  into  the  joys  of  their  Lord. 

*  The  State  of  Tennessee  owns  the  Hermitage,  and  Mrs.  Jackson  resides  there 
as  its  guest. 


/ 


1 


FLBLs.M^J^'n'iiKr  ^.^^  iBT^misM. 


% 


X. 

HANNAH    VAN    BUREN. 

The  wife  of  President  Van  Buren  was  born  at  Kinder- 
hook,  on  the  Hudson,  in  the  year  1782,  a  few  months 
after  the  birth  of  her  future  husband,  whose  schoolmate 
and  companion  she  was  during  their  early  years.  She 
was  of  Dutch  descent,  and  the  original  name  Goes,  but 
pronounced  by  her  ancestors  Hoes,  and  since  so  called 
by  all  the  members  of  the  family  in  this  country,  is 
iimiliar  to  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  history  of 
ihe  Netherlands. 

If  the  charms  of  nature — grand  scenery,  magnificent 
^  lews,  and  the  ever-varying  harmony  of  beautiful  skies 
.  -could  add  to  the  growth  and  development  of  child- 
hood, Hannah  Hoes  was  incomparably  blest.  The  years 
</f  her  life  were  spent  in  a  happy  home  circle  in  the  most 
beautiful  section  of  her  native  State — a  State  remarkable 
ior  the  grandeur  of  its  mountain  scenery,  and  the  num- 
ber of  its  romantic  rivers.  Chief  amonof  these,  and  sur- 
passed  by  none  in  the  world,  is  the  Hudson,  in  sight  of 
whose  classic  waters  she  lived  and  died. 

Her  ancestors  were  sturdy,  enterprising  Dutch,  whose 
homes  for  many  generations  had  been  along  the  banks 
of  the  stream  discovered  by  their  renowned  countryman, 
and  not  one  of  the  rosy  urchins  of  their  households  but 


334  HANNAH    VAN    BUREN. 

knew  of  the  adventures  of  Hendrick  Hudson,  and  rever- 
enced him  not  only  as  the  hero  of  their  race  and  the  dis- 
coverer of  their  river,  but  the  founder  of  their  prosperity. 
Nor  could  the  tales  of  the  old  dames  who  resided  nearest 
the  lofty  Catskills — that  he  and  his  followers  still  haunted 
the  mountains  and  were  the  direct  cause  of  calamities — 
divest  their  minds  of  his  wondrous  exploits.  In  each 
ripple  of  the  dancing  waves,  in  the  denseness  of  the  gray 
fog,  or  perchance  in  the  quiet  stillness  of  eventide,  they 
recognized  some  similarity,  and  recalled  a  parallel  of  his 
experiences. 

Mid  such  scenes  and  under  such  influences  passed  all 
the  years  of  Mrs.  Van  Buren's  life. 

In  February,  1807,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five,  she  was 
married  to  Mr.  Van  Buren.  The  intimacy  which  resulted 
in  this  union  was  formed  in  early  childhood,  and  the 
marriage  took  place  as  soon  as  his  position  at  the 
bar  would  justify  such  a  step.  The  steadfastness  of  his 
attachment  to  his  young  relative  was  a  remarkable  trait 
in  the  character  of  Mr.  Van  Buren,  and  adds  a  lustre  to 
his  honored  name. 

Some  time  after  their  marriage  they  removed  to  Hud- 
son City,  where  eight  years  of  wedded  life  passed  fleetly 
away,  they  losing,  in  the  meantime,  the  youngest  of  their 
four  sons,  an  infant  only  a  few  weeks  old.  In  181 6, 
Mr.  Van  Buren  removed  his  family  to  Albany,  drawn 
thither,  doubtless,  by  his  increased  and  increasing  pro- 
fessional standing  and  political  leadership. 

From  this  time  forth,  the  highest  wishes  of  his  early 


AN    EARLY    SUMMER    HOME.  335 

life  were  crowned  with  complete  success.  Wealth,  fame 
and  influence  were  the  fruits  of  his  unremitted  industry 
for  nearly  twenty  years.  "  His  natural  talents  had 
reached  their  full  expansion  ;  his  laborious  industry  ex- 
hibited its  proper  results ;  and  amid  a  constellation  of 
c^reat  minds,  whose  brilliant  efforts  erected  and  adorned 
the  fabric  of  New  York  jurisprudence,  the  vigor  of  his 
intellect  and  the  richness  of  his  learning  won  for  him  a 
conspicuous  and  acknowledged  eminence." 

But  the  voice  of  adulation  fell  upon  unheeding  ears 
when  sickness  invaded  the  household  and  hastened  the 
cherished  wife  and  mother  from  her  loved  ones.  Not 
even  the  ardent  devotion,  the  deathless  affection  of  the 
husband  whose  efforts  in  life  had  all  been  made  for  her, 
could  stay  the  destroyer  in  his  cruel  work.  For  months 
she  lay  an  invalid,  tended  by  those  who  loved  her  more 
than  life,  and  then  sank  into  the  grave  a  victim  of  con- 
sumption. 

A  gentleman  of  high  distinction,  who  knew  her  inti- 
mately from  her  earliest  years,  said,  "  There  never  was  a 
woman  of  a  purer  and  kinder  heart."  Gentle  and  win- 
ning in  life,  her  memory  is  redolent  with  the  perfume  of 
her  saintly  sweetness  and  purity.  Miss  Cantine,  the 
niece  of  Mrs.  Van  Buren,  who  was  but  sixteen  years  of 
age  at  the  time  of  her  aunt's  death,  gives  this  picture  of 
her  last  days:  "Aunt  Hannah  lived  but  a  short  time 
after  their  removal  to  Albany,  dying  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-five,  when  her  youngest  child  was  still  an  infant. 
I  can  recall  but  little  about  her  till  her  last  sickness  and 


336  HANNAH    VAN    BUREN. 

death,  except  the  general  impression  I  have  of  her 
modest,  even  timid  manner — her  shrinkinof  from  obser- 
vation,  and  her  loving,  gentle  disposition.  The  last,  long 
sickness  (she  was  confined  to  the  house  for  six  months) 
and  her  death  are  deeply  engraved  on  my  memory. 
When  told  by  her  physicians  that  she  could  live,  in  all 
probability,  but  a  few  days  longer,  she  called  her  children 
to  her  and  gave  them  her  dying  counsel  and  blessing, 
and  with  the  utmost  composure  bade  them  farewell  and 
committed  them  to  the  care  of  the  Saviour  she  loved, 
and  in  whom  she  trusted. 

"This  scene  was  the  more  remarkable  to  those  who 
witnessed  it,  as,  through  the  most  of  her  sickness,  she 
had  been  extremely  nervous,  being  only  able  to  see  her 
children  for  a  few  moments  on  those  days  on  which  she 
was  most  comfortable.  They  could  only  go  to  her  bed- 
side to  kiss  her,  and  then  be  taken  away.  As  an  evi- 
dence of  her  perfect  composure  in  view  of  death,  I  will 
mention  this  fact.  It  was  customary  in  that  day,  at  least 
it  was  the  custom  in  the  city  of  Albany,  for  the  bearers 
to  wear  scarfs  which  were  provided  by  the  family  of  the 
deceased.  Aunt  requested  that  this  might  be  omitted  at 
her  burial,  and  that  the  amount  of  the  cost  of  such  a 
custom  should  be  given  to  the  poor.  Her  wishes  were 
entirely  carried  out." 

The  following  obituary  notice  is  in  itself  a  sketch  of 
the  character  of  Mrs.  Van  Buren,  and  was  written  by 
one  who  knew  her  better  than  any  one  out  of  her  own 
family. 


JOY    OF    THK    rilklSriAN    FAITH.  337 

From  the  Albany  Ar;:;us,  Feb.  8,  1819. 

"  Died  in  this  city,  on  the  evening  of  Friday,  the  5th 
inst,  after  a  lingering  illness,  Mrs.  Hannah  Van 
Biiren,  wife  of  the  Hon.  Martin  Van  Buren,  in  the 
thirty-sixth  year  of  her  age.  The  death  of  this  ami- 
able and  excellent  woman  is  severely  felt  by  a  nu- 
merous circle  of  relatives  and  friends.  As  a  daughter 
and  a  sister,  wife  and  mother,  her  loss  is  deeply  de- 
plored, for  in  all  these  various  relations  she  was  affec- 
tionate, tender,  and  truly  estimable.  But  the  tear  of 
sorrow  is  almost  dried  by  the  reflection  that  she  lived  the 
life  and  died  the  death  of  the  righteous.  Modest  and 
unassuming,  possessing  the  most  engaging  simplicity  of 
manners,  her  heart  was  the  residence  of  every  kind 
affection,  and  glowed  with  sympathy  for  the  wants  and 
sufferings  of  others.  Her  temper  was  uncommonly 
mild  and  sweet,  her  bosom  was  filled  with  benevolence 
and  content — no  love  of  show,  no  ambitious  desires,  no 
pride  of  ostentation  ever  disturbed  its  peace.  When 
her  attention  was  directed,  some  years  before  her  death, 
to  the  important  concerns  of  religion  and  salvation,  she 
presented  to  the  gospel  she  embraced  a  rich  soil  for  the 
growth  and  cultivation  of  every  Christian  principle. 
Humility  was  her  crowning  grace,  she  possessed  it  in  a 
rare  degree;  it  took  deep  root  and  flourished  full  and 
fair,  shedding  over  every  action  of  her  life  its  genial 
influence.  She  was  an  ornament  of  the  Christian  faith, 
exemplifying  in  her  life  the  duty  it  enjoins,  and  experienc- 
ing, in  a  good  degree,  its   heavenly  joys,   its   cheering 


338  HANNAH    VAN    BUREN. 

hopes.  In  her  last  illness  she  was  patient  and  resigned. 
In  the  midst  of  life,  with  all  that  could  make  it  worth 
possessing — esteemed  and  loved,  happy  in  her  family 
and  friends — she  was  forced  away.  But  she  left  all  with- 
out a  sigh.  She  waited  the  approach  of  death  with 
calmness — her  Redeemer  had  robbed  it  of  its  sting  and 
made  it  a  welcome  messenger.  Doubtless,  '  'twas  gain 
for  her  to  die.'  Doubtless,  she  is  now  enjoying  that 
rest  *  which  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God.'  Precious 
shall  be  the  memory  of  her  virtues, 

"  Sweet  the  savor  of  her  name, 
And  soft  her  sleeping  bed." 


> 


■''■^N.-. 


-^"^^-Ji-Z  ^      V!? 


^  )  // 


\ 


XI. 

ANGELICA  VAN  BUREN. 

The  era  in  which  Hannah  Van  Buren  lived  was  far 
removed  from  her  husband's  ascension  to  the  Presidency, 
for  she  had  been  dead  seventeen  years,  when,  in  1837, 
that  event  occurred.  He  remained  a  widower,  and,  but 
for  the  presence  of  his  accomplished  daughter-in-law,  his 
administration  would  have  been  socially  a  failure.  The 
prestige  of  his  high  position  was  not  complete  until  the 
honors  were  shared  with  his  young  relative. 

Angelica  Singleton,  the  daughter  of  Richard  Singleton 
Esq.,  "was  born  in  Sumpter  District,  South  Carolin?i. 
Her  grandfather  Singleton,  and  her  great-grandfather 
General  Richardson,  served  with  distinction  in  the  revolu- 
tionary war.  On  the  maternal  side,  her  grandfather, 
John  Coles,  Esq.,  of  Albemarle  county,  Virginia,  was 
the  intimate  and  valued  friend  of  Presidents  Jefferson 
and  Madison,  and  two  of  his  sons  were  respectively  their 
private  secretaries  during  their  Presidential  terms. 

Miss  Singleton's  early  advantages  were  in  keeping 
with  her  elevated  social  position.  To  complete  an 
education  superior  to  the  generality  of  her  sex  at  that 
day,  she  spent  several  years  at  Madame  Grelaud's  sem- 
inar}',  in   Philadelphia.      The  winter    previous    to    her 

marriage,  she  passed  in  Washington,  in   the  family  of 

(339) 


340  ANGELICA    VAN    BUREN. 

her  kinsman,  Senator  William  C.  Preston.  Soon  after 
her  arrival,  her  cousin,  the  justly  celebrated  Mrs.  Madi- 
son, procured  the  appointment  of  a  day  to  present  her 
to  the  President,  accompanied  also  by  Senator  Preston's 
family.  Her  reception  was  a  very  flattering-  one,  and 
she  became  a  ereat  favorite  with  President  Van  Buren. 
In  November  of  the  year  following  (1838),  she  was 
married  at  her  father's  residence,  to  Colonel,  then  Major, 
Van  Buren,  the  President's  eldest  son,  and  his  private 
secretary — a  graduate  of  West  Point  and  long  an  officer 
in  the  army.  Her  first  appearance  as  the  lady  of  the 
White  House  was  on  the  following  New  Year's  day, 
when,  supported  by  the  ladies  of  the  cabinet,  she  received 
with  the  President. 

The  following  brief  though  favorable  cotemporaneous 
notice  of  that  occasion  is  taken  from  a  long  and  racy 
account  by  a  correspondent  of  the  Boston  Post,  of  the 
movements  at  the  capital  on  New  Year's  day: 

"The  Executive  Mansion  was  a  place  of  much  more 
than  usual  attraction  in  consequence  of  the  first  appear- 
ance there  of  the  bride  of  the  President's  son  and  private 
secretary,  Mrs.  Abram  Van  Buren.  She  is  represented 
as  being  a  lady  of  rare  accomplishments,  very  modest, 
yet  perfectly  easy  and  graceful  in  her  manners,  and  free 
and  vivacious  in  her  conversation.  She  was  universally 
,  admired  and  is  said  to  have  borne  the  fatigue  of  a  three 
hours'  levee  with  a  patience  and  pleasantry  which  must 
be  inexhaustible  to  last  one  through  so  severe  a  trial. 
A  constant  current  set  from  the  President's  house  to  the 


THE    PALMETTO    STATE.  34I 

modest  mansion  of  the  much  respected  lady  of  ex-Presi- 
dent Madison.  Ex-President  Adams  and  his  lady  were 
also  cordially  greeted  at  their  residence  by  a  number  of 
friends." 

Mrs.  Van  Buren  is  the  only  daughter  of  South 
Carolina  who  has  graced  the  White  House  as  hostess, 
and  her  life  there  was  rendered  as  entirely  agreeable  as 
the  combined  influences  of  wealth,  station,  and  refine- 
ment could  make  it.  The  reminiscences  of  her  early 
life  carry  us  back  to  a  period  when  South  Carolina  en- 
joyed the  distinction  of  sharing  with  Virginia  the  honor 
of  being  the  seat  of  elegant  hospitality  and  refined  culture. 
Under  the  benign  influences  of  a  matchless  climate  and 
great  wealth,  the  people  of  the  Palmetto  State  enjoyed 
the  leisure  and  opportunity  of  developing  all  those  char- 
acteristics which  adorn  humanity  and  render  life  attrac- 
tive. The  citizens  of  this  State  were  fortunate  In  being 
the  descendants  of  the  best  families  of  Virginia,  and  Mrs. 
Van  Buren  was  a  most  pleasing  representative  of  this 
old  aristocracy. 

Perhaps  no  aristocracy  in  this  country  was  ever  so 
entirely  modeled  after  the  ways  and  habits  of  the  English 
nobility  as  that  of  Virginia  and  South  Carolina.  The 
people  were  enabled,  through  the  institution  of  slavery, 
to  keep  up  a  style  of  living  impossible  under  other 
conditions,  and  they  had  the  wealth  and  the  inclination 
to  be  its  successful  imitators.  They  were  a  monarchial 
class  in  a  republican  government. 

The  position  of  Mrs.  Van  Buren's  family  was  always 


342  ANGELICA    VAN    BUREN. 

such  that  all  the  avenues  of  intellectual  enjoyment  were 
open  to  her,  while  her  natural  endowments  were  of  that 
high  order  which  rendered  cultivation  rapid  and  pleasant. 
Added  to  her  many  gifts  was  the  irresistible  one  of 
beauty  of  form  and  deportment.  The  engraving,  from 
a  portrait  by  Inman,  painted  soon  after  the  time  of  her 
marriage,  represents  the  exceeding  loveliness  of  her 
charming  person.  More  potent  than  mere  regularity 
of  features  is  the  gentle,  winning  expression  of  her  clear 
black  eyes ;  and  the  smile  about  her  finely  chiselled 
lips  betokens  the  proud  serenity  of  her  most  fortunate 
life. 

Mrs.  Van  Buren  was,  on  her  mother's  side,  descended 
from  a  loncf  line  of  ancestors,  and  the  o-enealoofical 
tables  of  the  family  discover  many  of  the  leading  names 
of  American  politicians  and  statesmen.  Aside  from 
mere  wealth,  they  possessed  abilities  which,  in  many  in- 
stances, secured  diem  the  highest  position  in  the  gift  of 
their  orovernment.  Prominent  amono-  these  was  her 
uncle,  Mr.  Stevenson,  Minister  to  England.  In  the 
spring  of  1S39,  Colonel  and  Mrs.  Van  Buren  made  a 
rapid  visit  to  Europe,  returning  at  the  request  of  the 
President  in  the  following  fall  in  time  for  the  session  of 
Congress.  While  abroad,  they  enjoyed  the  most  un- 
usual social  advantages,  being  members  of  the  Presi- 
dent's family,  and  she  a  niece  of  the  American  ambas- 
sador, who  had  been  a  resident  of  London  several  years. 
They  were  in  London  during  the  whole  of  the  season  of 
the  year  following  the  queen's  coronation,  which  derived 


ABROAD,  343 

especial  brilliancy  from  the  presence  of  the  present 
Emperor  of  Russia,  Prince  Henry  of  Orange,  and  other 
foreio^ners  of  note. 

No  American  lady  has  ever  visited  Europe  under 
similar  circumstances.  Nor  have  any  of  her  country- 
women made  a  more  lasting  impression  than  did  this 
young  representative  of  the  President's  family.  By  her 
cultivated,  unassuming  manners  she  made  herself  most 
agreeable  to  the  court  circles  of  England,  and  main- 
tained in  the  saloons  of  royalty  the  simplicity  and  dignity 
of  her  republican  education. 

Mrs.  Stevenson  was  the  chaperon  of  Mrs.  Van  Buren 
on  all  public  occasions,  and  the  recollections  of  evenings 
spent  with  her  at  "  Almack's,"  at  the  Palace,  and  in  the 
society  of  the  cultured  and  noble,  were  always  sunny 
memories  in  the  heart  of  her  niece. 

Major  Van  Buren's  position  as  private  secretary  ren- 
dered their  unexampled  and  most  fortunate  visit  to 
England  of  short  duration.  To  reach  America  before 
the  meeting  of  Congress,  they  left  London  for  the  con- 
tinent. In  the  course  of  their  hurried  tour,  they  passed 
some  weeks  in  Paris,  and  were  presented  by  the  Amer- 
ican minister.  General  Cass,  to  the  king  and  queen. 
They  were  invited  to  dine  at  St.  Cloud,  and  were  re- 
ceived with  the  kind,  unceremonious  manner  which,  it  is 
well  known,  distinguished  all  the  members  of  that  branch 
of  the  Orleans  family.  After  dinner,  Louis  Philippe 
conducted  them  through  the  rooms  of  the  Palace,  even 
to  the  door  of  the  sleeping  apartment,  as  he  supposed, 


344  ANGELICA    VAN    BUREN. 

of  his  grandson,  the  Comte  De  Paris,  at  which  he 
knocked  without  obtaining  any  response.  The  queen, 
having  been  told  by  Mrs.  Van  Buren  on  her  return  of 
what  had  happened,  said,  laughingly,  "  Ah  !  that  is  all 
the  kincT  knows  about  it!  After  his  mother  left  with  the 
Due  D'Orleans  for  Algiers,  I  caused  the  child  to  be  re- 
moved to  a  room  nearer  my  own."  She  then  proposed 
to  send  for  him,  and  for  her  "Wurtemberg  grandchild 
also,  but  unfortunately  for  the  gratification  of  her 
guest's  natural  curiosity,  the  little  princes  were  fast 
asleep. 

After  the  expiration  of  President  Van  Buren's  term 
of  office,  Mrs.  Van  Buren  and  her  husband  lived  with 
him  at  Lindenwald  through  several  years  of  his  retire- 
ment, passing  much  of  the  w^inter  months  with  her 
parents  in  South  Carolina,  and  in  1848  establishing 
themselves  in  the  city  of  New  York,  which  has  since 
been  their  home  uninterruptedly,  except  by  visits  to  the 
South,  rendered  necessary  by  the  death  of  her  father 
and  the  consequent  charge  of  her  patrimonial  estate, 
and  by  a  three  years'  absence  in  Europe,  superintending 
the  education  of  their  sons. 

Mrs.  Van  Buren's  middle  life  was  spent  in  New  York, 
where  she  lived  a  pleasant  existence,  surrounded  by  her 
family,  and  in  the  midst  of  a  charming  social  circle.  Her 
career  was  an  exceptionally  prosperous  one,  and  she  en- 
joyed life  thoroughly.  She  was  a  cultivated,  elegant-man- 
nered person,  considerate  of  others,  sweet  in  disposition, 
and  gracious  in  speech.     Her  home  was  the  centre  of 


A    NOBLE    WOMAN    NOBLY    PLANNED.  345 

elegant  hospitality,  and  in  the  gayest  city  on  this  con- 
tinent she  was  accounted  a  society  leader.  She  was  an 
unselfish  woman,  and  she  was  never  tardy  in  employing 
her  gifts  or  her  means  in  behalf  of  others.  Prosperous 
and  educated  to  the  enjoyment  of  wealth;  cultured  and 
inclined  to  appreciate  all  that  was  pleasing  and  beautiful 
in  life,  her  career  is  a  delightful  one  to  chronicle.  She 
knew  sorrow  in  the  early  death  of  two  of  her  children  ; 
and  in  later  years  the  loss  of  relatives  and  friends  cast  a 
momentary  gloom  about  her.  But  few  earthly  lives 
have  been  so  unvaryingly  even  and  free  from  strong 
contrasts.  Up  to  the  time  of  her  death  (which  occurred 
the  29th  of  December,  1878)  she  was  a  lady  upon  whom 
it  was  a  pleasure  to  look ;  whose  bearing  discovered 
aristocratic  lineage,  and  cultivation  under  happy  con- 
ditions. 


XII. 

ANNA     SYMMES     HARRISON. 

Anna  Symmes,  the  wife  of  the  ninth  President  of  the 
United  States,  was  born  the  year  before  that  of  American 
Independence,  and  but  a  few  months  after  the  renowned 
skirmish  at  Lexington.  Her  birthplace  was  near  Mor- 
ristown,  New  Jersey,  the  scene  of  suffering  the  following 
year,  where  the  tracks  of  the  blood-stained  feet  of  the 
soldiers  attested  their  forlorn  condition.  Soon  after  her 
birth,  which  occurred  the  25th  of  July,  1775,  her  mother 
died.  Bereft  of  her  care,  she  was  thrown  upon  hcr 
father's  hands  for  those  attentions  necessary  for  one  of 
such  a  tender  age,  which  until  her  fourth  year  he  care- 
fully bestowed.  Her  maternal  grandparents,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Tuthill,  were  residing  at  Southhold,  Long  Island, 
and  thither  at  the  age  of  four  years  she  was  taken  by 
her  surviving  parent.  The  incidents  of  her  journey  from 
Morristown  to  Long  Island,  then  in  the  possession  of  the 
British,  she  remembered  through  life.  Her  father,  the 
Hon.  John  Cleves  Symmes,  though  at  the  time  a  Colonel 
in  the  Continental  army,  was  i  •  anxious  to  place  his 
danehter  with  her  orandmother,  that  he  assumed  the 
disguise  of  a  British  officer's  uniform  and  successfully 
accomplished  his  perilous  undertaking.  Leaving  her  in 
the  home   from  which  he  had  taken  her  mother  years 

before,  he  joined  his  own  troops  and  served  with  dis- 
{346) 


EARLY    RELIGIOUS    TEACHING.  347 

tinction  durlne  the  war.  Not  until  after  the  evacuation 
of  New  York,  in  the  fall  of  1 7S3,  did  die  father  and  child 
meet  again,  nor  did  she  return  to  his  New  Jersey  home. 
Under  the  care  of  her  excellent  grandmother,  she  be- 
came early  imbued  with  a  love  of  religious  reading,  and 
learned  those  early  habits  of  industry  which  the  youi?g 
under  the  right  influences  early  attain.  Mrs.  Tu thill  wa; 
a  godly  woman,  whose  soul  had  been  deeply  stirred  by 
the  preaching  of  Whitfield,  whom  she  greatly  reverenced 
and  admired.  From  her  lips  the  little  Anna  received 
her  first  religious  instructions,  the  good  impressions  of 
which  lasted  her  throuorh  life.  She  often  remarked  that 
"  from  her  earliest  childhood,  the  frivolous  amusements 
of  youth  had  no  charms  for  her.  If  ever  constrained  to 
attend  places  of  fashionable  amusement,  it  was  to  gratify 
others  and  not  herself."  In  this  early  home  of  quiet  and 
redrement,  she  acquired  habits  of  order  and  truthfulness 
which  characterized  her  conduct  in  after  years.  Her 
hands,  even  as  a  child,  were  never  idle,  but  as  a  Christian 
virtue,  she  was  trained  to  diligence,  prudence,  and  econ- 
omy. When  old  enough  to  attend  school,  she  was  placed 
at  a  seminary  in  East  Hampton,  where  she  remained 
some  time,  and  subseqijendy  she  was  a  pupil  of  Mrs. 
Isabelle  Graham,  and  .  a  inmate  of  her  family  in  New 
York  city.  Here  she  readily  acquired  knowledge,  and 
improved  the  opportunities  afforded  her.  For  her 
teacher  she  ever  retained  the  highest  regard,  and  cher- 
ished the  memory  of  that  pious  and  exemplary  woman 
through  all  the  chanores  of  her  own  life. 


348  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

At  the  age  of  nineteen  she  bade  adieu  to  her  aged 
grandparents,  and  accompanied  her  father  and  step- 
mother to  Ohio,  in  1 794.  A  year  previous  to  this  time, 
Judge  Symmes  had  located  a  small  colony  of  settlers  who 
had  accompanied  him  from  New  Jersey,  at  a  point  on 
the  Ohio  river,  afterward  known  as  North  Bend.  Re- 
turninof  to  the  Eastern  States,  he  married  Miss  Susan 
Livingston,  a  daughter  of  Governor  Livingston,  of  New 
York,  and  in  the  autumn  started  again,  accompanied  by 
his  wife  and  daughter,  for  his  frontier  home.  The  journey 
was  made  with  great  difficulty,  and  the  party  did  not 
reach  North  Bend  until  the  morning  of  the  i  st  of  January, 
1795.  Thus  was  the  youthful  Anna  a  pioneer  in  the 
land  which  she  lived  to  see  blossomins:  as  the  rose  under 
the  hands  of  civilization  and  material  progression. 

Judge  Symmes  was  one  of  the  Associate  Judges  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  Northwestern  Territory,  and  was 
often  called  to  attend  court  in  a  distant  part  of  the  Terri- 
tory. During  the  absence  of  her  father  on  these  jour- 
neyings,  Anna  would  spend  most  of  her  time  with  an  elder 
sister,  who  had  previously  removed  to  Lexington,  Ken- 
tucky. It  was  while  on  one  of  these  visits  to  her  sister, 
Mrs.  Peyton  Short,  that  she  formed  the  acquaintance 
of  her  future  husband,  then  Captain  Harrison,*  of  the 


*  William  Henry  Harrison,  the  third  and  youngest  son  of  Benjamin  Harrison,  of 
Virginia,  was  born  the  gth  day  of  February,  1773,  at  Berkley,  on  the  James  river, 
about  twenty-five  miles  below  Richmond,  in  Charles  City  county.  His  father  was 
a  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  a  member  of  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, and  afterward  Governor  of  Virginia,      Young  Harrison  was  educated   at 


PERSONAL    BEAUTY.  349 

United  States  Army,  and  in  command  of  Fort  Washing- 
ton, the  present  site  of  Cincinnati.  The  youthful  Vir- 
ginian was  much  attracted  by  the  gentle,  modest 
manners  and  the  sweet  face  of  Anna  Symmes,  and  he 
determined  on  winning  her  hand.  The  effort  was  highly 
successful,  for  they  were  married  at  her  father's  house, 
North  Bend,  Ohio,  November  2 2d,  1795. 

Thus,  in  less  than  one  year  after  her  removal  from 
her  childhood's  home,  in  the  twentieth  year  of  her  age, 
Anna  Symmes  became  the  wife  of  Captain  Harrison, 
isubsequently  the  most  popular  General  of  his  day  and 
President  of  the  United  States. 

Soon  after  their  marriage.  Captain  Harrison  resigned 
his  commission  in  the  army,  and  was  elected  the  first 
delegate  to  Congress  from  the  Northwest  Territory. 
Mrs.  Harrison  accompanied  him  to  Philadelphia,  then 
l.he  seat  of  the  General  Government,  but  spending, 
however,  most  of  the  session  in  visiting  her  husband's 
relatives  in  Viro-inia. 

From  those  who  knew  Mrs.  Harrison  at  this  period 
of  her  life,  is  given  the   assurance  that  she  was  very 


Hampden  Sydney  College,  and  afterward  studied  medicine.  After  his  father's 
death,  in  179 1,  he  became  the  ward  of  Robert  Morris,  the  celebrated  financier, 
whose  private  fortune  so  often  relieved  the  sufferings  of  the  Continental  Army. 
When  about  to  graduate  as  a  physician,  the  reports  of  troubles  in  the  West  decided 
him  to  join  the  frontier  troops.  The  opposition  of  his  excellent  guardian  was  not 
sufficient  to  deter  him  from  his  purpose,  and  as  his  design  was  approved  by  Wash- 
ington, who  had  also  been  a  warm  friend  of  his  father,  he  received  from  that  noble 
warrior  an  ensign's  commission  in  the  fust  regiment  of  United  States  Artillery,  then 
stationed  at  Fort  Washington. 


352  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

After  the  battle  of  Tippecanoe,  General  Harrison  re- 
moved his  family  to  Cincinnati,  and  accepted  the  posi- 
tion of  Major-General  in  the  forces  of  Kentucky,  then 
about  to  march  to  the  relief  of  the  Northwestern 
Territory. 

Mrs.  Harrison  was  thus  left  a  comparative  stranger 
in  Cincinnati,  with  the  sole  charge  of  her  young  and 
large  family  of  children  during  the  greater  part  of  the 
war  of  1 812.  During  this  time,  several  of  the  children 
were  prostrated  by  long  and  severe  illness,  and  to  this 
trial  was  added  the  painful  anxiety  attending  the  fate  of 
her  husband.  But  under  these  and  all  afflictions,  Mrs. 
Harrison  bore  up  with  the  firmness  of  a  Roman  matron, 
and  the  humility  and  resignation  of  a  tried  Christian 
mother. 

In  18 14,  General  Harrison  resigned  his  position  in 
the  army  and  went  to  live  at  North  Bend,  fifteen  miles 
below  Cincinnati,  on  the  Ohio.  In  the  limits  of  this 
sketch  it  is  impossible  to  give  all  the  interesting  details 
of  Mrs.  Harrison's  life  during  her  thirty  years'  residence 
at  the  9ld  homestead.  Many,  very  many  of  her  acts  of 
neighborly  kindness  and  Christian  charity  will  never  be 
known  on  earth,  for  she  shrank  from  any  display  of 
benevolence. 

General  Harrison  being  much  from  home,  engaged  in 
public  affairs,  she  was  left  in  the  control  of  her  large 
family  of  ten  children,  and  ofttimes  the  children  of  her 
friends  and  neighbors.  Schools  in  that  new  and  un- 
settled  country  were  "  few  and  far  between,"  and  Mrs. 


TRIED    IN'    THE    FURNACE    OF    AFFLICTIOX.  353 

Harrison  always  employed  a  private  tutor.  The  gen- 
erous hospitality  of  North  Bend  being  so  well  known,  it 
was  not  surprising  that  many  of  the  children  of  the 
neighborhood  became  inmates  of  her  family  for  as  long 
as  they  chose  to  avail  themselves  of  the  privileges  of  the 
little  school. 

Although  at  this  time  in  delicate  health,  Mrs.  Harrison 
never  wearied  or  complained  in  the  discharge  of  domes- 
tic duties,  and  forgot  the  multiplied  cares  she  assumed 
in  the  thought  of  the  benefit  the  children  of  others 
would  derive  from  such  an  arrano-ement.  She  was  sus- 
tained  by  her  husband,  and  loved  by  her  children  and 
servants,  and  the  burden  was  lightened  spiritually  if  not 
materially. 

But  here  commenced  the  lono^  series  of  trials  which 
tested  her  character  and  chastened  her  heart.  During 
her  thirty  years'  life  at  North  Bend,  she  buried  one 
child  in  infancy,  and  subsequently  followed  to  the  grave 
three  dauQfhters  and  four  sons,  all  of  whom  were  settled 
in  life,  and  ten  grandchildren.  In  view  of  these  bereave- 
ments she  wrote  to  her  pastor,  "And  now  what  shall  I 
say  to  these  things;  only,  'Be  still  and  know  that  I  am 
God.'  You  will  not  fail  to  pray  for  me  and  my  dear  son 
and  daughter  who  are  left.  For  I  have  no  wish  for  my 
children  and  o-fandchildren  than  to  see  them  the  humble 
followers  of  the  Lord  Jesus." 

Her  influence  over  her  family  was  strong  and  abiding, 
and  all  loved  to  do  reverence  to  her  consistent,  con- 
scientious life.  Her  only  surviving  son  wrote  in  1848, 
23 


354  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

"That  I  am  a  firm  believer  in  the  religion  of  Christ  is  not 
a  virtue  of  mine,  I  imbibed  it  at  my  mother's  breast, 
and  can  no  more  divest  myself  of  it  than  I  can  of  my 
nature." 

The  same  was  true  of  all  her  children,  and  what  errors 
they  might  embrace,  they  could  not  forget  the  religion 
of  their  mother,  nor  wander  far  from  the  precepts,  for 
"whatever  is  imbibed  with  the  mother's  milk  lasts  for- 
ever for  weal  or  for  woe."  The  following  incident  will 
show  that  her  precepts  and  examples  as  a  member  of 
the  church  were  not  unappreciated  by  her  husband.  In 
1840,  during  the  Presidential  canvass,  a  delegation  of 
politicians  visited  North  Bend  on  the  Sabbath.  General 
Harrison  met  them  near  his  residence  and  extending  his 
hand,  said  :  "Gentlemen,  I  should  be  most  happy  to  wel- 
come you  on  any  other  day,  but  if  I  have  no  regard  for 
religion  myself,  I  have  too  much  respect  for  the  religion 
of  my  wife  to  encourage  the  violation  of  the  Christian 
Sabbath." 

In  1836,  General  Harrison  was  first  nominated  for  the 
Presidency.  Mrs.  Harrison  M^as  much  annoyed  by  even 
the  remote  possibility  of  his  election.  There  were  no 
less  than  three  candidates  of  the  old  federal  party  in  the 
field,  and  the  triumph  of  either  was  almost  an  impossi- 
bility. Yet  even  this  probability  of  having  to  break  up 
the  retirement  of  her  old  home  at  North  Bend  and  be 
thrown  in  the  stadon  of  fashion  and  position  in  Wash- 
ington, filled  the  heart  of  Mrs.  Harrison  with  dismay. 
When  the  trio  of  candidates  had   defeated  themselves 


"TirPECANOE    AND    TYLER    TOO.  355 

and  deleted  the  champion  of  die  Democracy,  Mrs.  Har- 
rison felt  heardly  glad  that  her  quiet  was  again  restored, 
and  she  contemplated  with  renewed  delight  the  happy 
contentment  of  her  western  home  on  the  banks  of  the 
sparkling,  flowing  river. 

In  1 840,  the  Federal  party  had  ceased  to  exist ;  the 
opponents  of  Jackson  and  the  system  which  emanated 
from  his  administration  had  taken  the  name  of  the  Whig 
part)',  and  Harrison,  the  sagacious  Governor  of  the 
Northwestern  TerrItor\-,  the  successful  General,  and 
later  the  farmer  of  Nordi  Bend,  was  the  chosen  of  the 
people,  and  the  idol  of  his  party. 

The  canvass,  for  months  before  the  day  of  the  election, 
carried  the  most  intense  excitement  and  unbounded 
enthusiasm  throughout  the  Union.  The  pecuniary  diffi- 
culties of  the  countr)',  during  the  past  administration, 
left  the  people  an  opportunity  for  polidcal  gatherings. 
Financial  prostration  and  hopeless  bankruptcy  paralyzed 
the  various  trades;  and  in  the  workshop,  as  In  the  count- 
ing-house, in  the  streets,  in  the  fields,  in  vacant  factonies 
and  barns,  in  the  mechanic's  as  in  the  artisan's  room, 
were  heard  debates  of  the  pending  question.  Every- 
where long  processions  with  mottoed  banners  were  seen 
marching  to  music,  and  throughout  the  land  was  heard 
the  famous  old  "  Tippecanoe  and  Tyler  too,"  and  "Van  is 
a  used-up  man,"  campaign  songs.  Never  before  or  since 
was  such  Interest  manifested,  and  never  again  v/ill  there 
be  the  same  admiration  expressed  for  any  aspirant  to 
public  honors.     Log-cabins,  illustrative  of  General  Har- 


356  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

rison's  early  days,  were  "raised"  everywhere,  and  "com- 
panies" visited  from  place  to  place,  equipped  in  hand- 
some uniforms,  and  accompanied  by  bands  of  music. 
The  whigs  struggled  manfully  to  elect  their  candidate, 
bringing  to  their  service  powerful  appeals  in  the  forms 
of  stirring  song,  executed  by  youths  in  the  streets,  and 
dwelling  continually  upon  the  resumption  of  specie  pay- 
ment, revival  of  languishing  trade,  and  public  retrench- 
ment and  economy.  The  result  was  such  as  every  one 
expected.  General  Harrison  was  elected  President  by 
a  large  majority,  and  John  Tyler,  of  Virginia,  was  chosen 
Vice-President.  This  triumphant  victory  brought  no 
sense  of  pride  -or  elation  to  Mrs.  Harrison.  She  was 
grateful  to  her  countrymen  for  this  unmistakable  appre- 
ciation of  the  civil  and  military  services  of  her  husband, 
and  rejoiced  at  his  vindication  over  his  traducers,  but 
she  took  no  pleasure  in  contemplating  the  pomp  and  cir- 
cumstance of  a  life  at  the  Executive  Mansion.  At  no 
period  of  her  life  had  she  any  taste  for  the  gayeties  of 
fashion  or  the  dissipations  of  society.  Her  friends  were 
ever  welcome  to  her  home,  and  found  there  refined  pleas- 
ures and  innocent  amusements,  but  for  the  life  of  a 
woman  of  the  world  she  had  no  sympathy. 

General  Harrison  left  his  home  in  February,  and  was 
received  in  Washington  with  every  demonstration  of  re- 
spect, and  welcomed  by  Mayor  Seaton  in  a  speech  deliv- 
ered at  City  Hall.  It  was  raining  hard  when  he  left  the 
railroad  depot,  yet  he  walked  with  his  hat  in  his  hand, 
accompanied  by  an  immense  concourse  of  people.     He 


CANOES    AND    LOG-CABINS.  357 

went  from  Washino-ton  to  his  old  home  in  Viroflnia  for  a 
few  days,  but  returned  in  time  for  the  Inauguration.  The 
morning  of  the  4th  of  March,  1841,  was  ushered  in  by  a 
salute  of  twenty-six  guns.  The  day  was  devoted  entirely 
to  pleasure.  The  city  of  Washington  was  thronged  with 
people,  many  of  whom  were  from  the  most  distant  States 
of  the  Union,  The  procession  was  in  keeping  with  the 
enthusiasm  and  interest  displayed  throughout  the  cam- 
paign. Ladies  thronged  the  windows,  and  waved  their 
handkerchiefs  in  token  of  kind  feelings,  while  the  wild 
huzzas  of  the  opposite  sex  filled  the  air  with  a  deafening 
noise.  General  Harrison  was  mounted  on  a  white 
charger,  accompanied  by  several  personal  friends,  and 
his  immediate  escort  were  the  officers  and  soldiers  who 
had  fought  under  him.  Canoes  and  cabins,  covered  with 
appropriate  mottoes,  were  conspicuous,  and  the  scene 
was  one  of  universal  splendor. 

Mrs.  Harrison's  health,  delicate  for  many  years,  was 
particularly  frail  in  February  when  her  husband  left  home 
for  Washington,  and  her  physicians  protested  against 
her  crossing  the  mountains  at  that  season  of  the  year, 
and  urged  her  remaining  in  Ohio  until  the  opening  of 
spring.  General  Harrison  was  accompanied  to  Wash- 
ington by  his  daughter-in-law,  Mrs,  Jane  F,  Harrison^ 
the  widow  of  his  namesake  son,  and  her  two  sons.  She 
was  a  very  refined,  accomplished  person,  and  exceedingly 
popular  during  her  short  stay  as  mistress  of  ceremonies 
at  the  White  House.  Besides  Mrs.  Jane  F.  Harrison, 
there  were  several  ladies  of  the  President's  family  resid- 


356  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

rison's  early  days,  were  "raised"  everywhere,  and  "com- 
panies "  visited  from  place  to  place,  equipped  in  hand- 
some uniforms,  and  accompanied  by  bands  of  music. 
The  whigs  struggled  manfully  to  elect  their  candidate, 
bringing  to  their  service  powerful  appeals  in  the  forms 
of  stirring  song,  executed  by  youths  in  the  streets,  and 
dwelling  continually  upon  the  resumption  of  specie  pay- 
ment, revival  of  languishing  trade,  and  public  retrench- 
ment and  economy.  The  result  was  such  as  every  one 
expected.  General  Harrison  was  elected  President  by 
a  large  majority,  and  John  Tyler,  of  Virginia,  was  chosen 
Vice-President.  This  triumphant  victory  brought  no 
sense  of  pride  or  elation  to  Mrs.  Harrison.  She  was 
grateful  to  her  countrymen  for  this  unmistakable  appre- 
ciation of  the  civil  and  military  services  of  her  husband, 
and  rejoiced  at  his  vindication  over  his  traducers,  but 
she' took  no  pleasure  In  contemplating  the  pomp  and  cir- 
cumstance of  a  life  at  the  Executive  Mansion.  At  no 
period  of  her  life  had  she  any  taste  for  the  gayeties  of 
fashion  or  the  dissipations  of  society.  Her  friends  were 
ever  welcome  to  her  home,  and  found  there  refined  pleas- 
ures and  Innocent  amusements,  but  for  the  life  of  a 
woman  of  the  world  she  had  no  sympathy. 

General  Harrison  left  his  home  In  February,  and  was 
received  In  Washington  with  every  demonstration  of  re- 
spect, and  welcomed  by  Mayor  Seaton  In  a  speech  deliv- 
ered at  City  Hall.  It  was  raining  hard  when  he  left  the 
railroad  depot,  yet  he  walked  with  his  hat  In  his  hand, 
accompanied  by  an  Immense  concourse  of  people.     He 


CANOES    AND    LOG -CABINS.  357 

went  from  Washington  to  his  old  home  in  Virginia  for  a 
few  days,  biit  returned  in  time  for  the  Inauguration.  The 
morning  of  the  4th  of  March,  1841,  was  ushered  in  by  a 
sakiteof  twenty-six  guns.  The  day  was  devoted  entirely 
to  pleasure.  The  city  of  Washington  was  thronged  with 
people,  many  of  whom  were  from  the  most  distant  States 
of  the  Union.  The  procession  was  in  keeping  with  the 
enthusiasm  and  interest  displayed  throughout  the  cam- 
paign. Ladies  thronged  the  windows,  and  waved  their 
handkerchiefs  in  token  of  kind  feelings,  while  the  wild 
huzzas  of  the  opposite  sex  filled  the  air  with  a  deafening 
noise.  General  Harrison  was  mounted  on  a  white 
charger,  accompanied  by  several  personal  friends,  and 
his  immediate  escort  were  the  officers  and  soldiers  who 
had  fought  under  him.  Canoes  and  cabins,  covered  with 
appropriate  mottoes,  were  conspicuous,  and  the  scene 
was  one  of  universal  splendor. 

Mrs.  Harrison's  health,  dehcate  for  many  years,  was 
particularly  fmil  in  February  when  her  husband  left  home 
for  Washington,  and  her  physicians  protested  against 
her  crossing  the  mountains  at  that  season  of  the  year, 
and  urged  her  remaining  in  Ohio  until  the  opening  of 
spring.  General  Harrison  was  accompanied  to  Wash- 
ington by  his  daughter-in-law,  Mrs,  Jane  F.  Harrison, 
the  widow  of  his  namesake  son,  and  her  two  sons.  She 
was  a  very  refined,  accomplished  person,  and  exceedingly 
popular  during  her  short  stay  as  mistress  of  ceremonies 
at  the  White  House.  Besides  Mrs.  Jane  F.  Harrison, 
there  were  several  ladies  of  the  President's  family  resid- 


358  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

ing  temporarily  with  her  until  Mrs.  Harrison  should 
come  on.  Mrs.  Findlay,  the  wife  of  General  Findlay 
and  aged  aunt  of  Mrs.  Harrison,  Miss  Ramsay,  a  cousin, 
and  Miss  Lucy  S.  Taylor,  of  Richmond,  Virginia,  a  niece 
of  the  President's,  these  were  the  occupants  of  the  man- 
sion the  few  short  weeks  of  the  President's  life,  for  in 
one  month  from  the  day  of  his  inauguration  he  died. 
Pneumonia  was  the  avowed  cause,  but  it  was  the  appli- 
cants for  office  who  killed  him.  He  was  weak  and  aged, 
and  unaccustomed  to  the  confined  life  forced  upon  him 
in  his  new  position,  and  the  gentle  kindness  with  which 
he  received  all  who  were  clamoring  for  office  did  but 
inspire  them  with  renewed  ardor.  The  whig  party  had 
been  out  of  power  many  years,  and  the  greed  of  the 
politicians  snapped  the  tendrils  of  the  veteran's  declining 
years  and  sent  him  to  the  tomb  before  the  glad  notes  of 
the  inauguration  apthem  had  died  over  the  Virginia  hills. 
President  Harrison  died  the  4th  of  April,  1S41,  and  on 
the  7th  was  laid  temporarily  to  rest  in  the  Congressional 
burying-grounds.  The  service  was  performed  in  the 
White  House,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Hawley,  in  the  presence  of 
President  Tyler,  ex-President  Adams,  members  of  the 
cabinet,  of  Congress,  and  the  foreign  ministers.  The 
procession  was  two  miles  in  length,  and  was  marshalled 
on  its  way  by  officers  on  horseback  carrying  white 
batons  with  black  tassels.  At  the  grounds,  the  liturgy 
of  the  Episcopal  church  was  recited  by  Mr.  Hawley. 
The  coffin  having  been  placed  in  the  receiving  vault, 
and  the  military  salute  having  been  fired,  the  procession 


FROM    GLORY    TO    GLORY.  2)50 

resumed  its  march  to  the  city,  and  by  five  o'clock  that 
evening  nothing  remained  but  empty  streets,  and  the 
emblems  of  mourning  upon  the  houses,  and  the  still 
deeper  gloom  which  oppressed  the  general  mind  with 
rtinewed  power  after  all  was  over;  and  the  sense  of  the 
public  bereavement  alone  was  left  to  fill  the  thoughts. 
The  following  touching  lines,  from  the  gifted  pen  of 
N.  P.  Willis,  remarkable  for  their  pathos  and  har- 
mony, need  no  apology  for  being  introduced  here. 
The  grandeur  and  simple  beauty  of  the  swelling  poem 
deserve  a  more  lasting  record  than  transitory  verses 
usually  receive. 

What  soared  the  old  eagle  to  die  at  the  sun, 
Lies  he  stiff  with  spread  wings  at  the  goal  he  has  won! 
Are  there  spirits  ijiore  blest  than  the  planet  of  even 
Who  mount  to  their  zeniih,  then  melt  into  heaven? 
No  waning  of  fire,  no  quenching  of  ray, 
But  rising,  still  rising,  when  passing  away ! 
Farewell,  gallant  eagle!  thou'rt  buried  in  light! 
God-speed  unto  heaven,  lost  star  of  our  night ! 

Death  !    Death  in  the  White  House  !  ah,  never  before 
Trod  his  skeleton  foot  on  the  President's  floor; 
He  is  looked  for  in  hovel  and  dreaded  in  hall. 
The  king  in  his  closet  keeps  hatchments  and  pall, 
The  youth  in  his  birth-place,  the  old  man  at  home. 
Make  clean  from  the  door-stone  the  path  to  the  tomb; 
But  the  lord  of  this  mansion  was  cradled  not  here, 
In  a  churchyard  far  off  stands  his  beckoning  bier: 
He  is  here  as  the  wave  crest  heaves  flashing  on  high, 
As  the  arrow  is  stopp'd  by  its  prize  in  the  sky — 
The  arrow  to  earth,  and  the  foam  to  the  shore. 
Death  finds  tliem  when  swiftness  and  shankle  are  o'er; 
But  Harrison's  death  fills  the  climax  of  story  : 
He  went  with  his  old  stride  from  glory  (o  glory. 


;i60  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

Lay  his  sword  on  his  breast !  there's  no  spot  on  its  blade 

In  whose  cankering  breath  his  bright  laurels  will  fade : 

'Twas  the  first  to  lead  on  at  humanity's  call, 

It  was  stay'd  with  sweet  mercy  when  "  gloiy  "  was  all; 

As  calm  in  the  council  as  gallant  in  war. 

He  fought  for  his  country,  and  not  its  "  hurrah ! " 

In  the  path  of  the  hero  with  pity  he  trod, 

Let  him  pass  with  his  sword  to  the  presence  of  God ! 

What  more  ?     Shall  we  on  with  his  ashes  ?     Yet  stay  ! 

He  hath  ruled  the  wide  realm  of  a  king  in  his  day; 

At  his  word,  like  a  monarch's,  went  treasure  and  land. 

The  bright  gold  of  thousands  has  passed  through  his  hand. 

Is  there  nothing  to  show  of  his  flittering  hoard  ? 

No  jewels  to  deck  the  rude  hilt  of  his  sword — 

No  trappings — no  horses?  what  had  he?     But  now. 

On,  on  with  his  ashes  !  he  left  but  his  plough  ! 

Brave  old  Cincinnatus  I  unwind  ye  his  sheet : 

Let  him  sleep  as  he  lived — with  his  purse  at  his  feet. 

Follow  now  as  ye  list :  the  first  mourner  to-day 
Is  the  nation — whose  father  is  taken  away. 
Wife,  children  and  neighbor  may  moan  at  his  knell — 
He' was  "  lover  and  friend  "  to  his  country  as  well ! 
For  the  stars  on  our  banner  grown  suddenly  dim 
Let  us  weep,  in  our  darkness — but  weep  not  for  him. 
Not  for  him,  who,  departing,  leaves  millions  in  tears; 
Not  for  him,  who  has  died  fall  of  honor  and   years: 
From  the  round  at  the  top  he  has  stepped  to  the  sky — 
It  is  blessed  to  go  when  so  ready  to  die  J 

The  members  of  President  Harrison's  family  imme- 
diately vacated  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  the  o-rief- 
stricken  widow  ceased  die  preparations  for  her  prolonged 
absence  from  home.  What  a  shock  this  death  must 
have  been  to  her !  For  many  months  an  interested 
spectator,  if  not  an  actor,  in  the  stirring  events  of  the 


A    CHRISTIAN    WIFE    AND    MOTHER.  361 

canvass  and  election,  afterward  a  sharer  in  the  triumphs 
of  her  husband,  and  for  weeks  anticipating  the  happy 
reunion  in  the  mansion  of  the  Presidents,  to  be  rudely 
torn  by  fate  from  his  presence  for  ev^er,  and  to  see  every 
hope  lying  crushed  around  her,  would  have  harrowed  a 
nature  of  coarsest  mould.  She  was  summoned  from  the 
busy  care  of  forwarding  some  matter  of  interest  to  be 
told  that  he  was  dead.  Dead !  she  could  scarcely  be- 
lieve the  evidences  of  her  senses.  Dead !  or  was  she 
mistaken  in  what  was  said  to  her?  His  last  letter  was 
before  her,  and  she  had  scarcely  ceased  reading  the  ac- 
counts in  the  papers  of  the  magnificence  of  the  inaugural 
ball. 

Howsoever  cruel  the  blow,  it  was  borne  meekly  and 
humbly  by  the  Christian  wife  and  mother,  and  she 
aroused  herself  from  the  stupor  in  which  the  announce- 
ment had  thrown  her. 

In  July,  the  remains  of  the  sincerely  regretted  Presi- 
dent and  deeply  mourned  husband  and  father  were  re- 
moved to  their  present  resting-place  at  North  Bend. 

Had  her  husband  lived,  Mrs.  Harrison  would  have 
gone  to  Washington  and  discharged  faithfully  and  con- 
scientiously the  duties  of  her  position.  But  her  residence 
there  would  not  have  been  in  accordance  with  her  wishes 
or  her  taste. 

She  continued  to  reside  at  her  old  home,  where  the 
happiest  years  of  her  life  had  been  spent,  until  the 
autumn  of  1855,  when  she  removed  from  the  old  home- 
stead to  the  residence  of  her  only  surviving  son,  Hon.  J. 


362  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

Scott  Harrison,  five  miles  below  North  Bend,  on  the 
Ohio  river.  She  remained  an  inmate  of  his  family  until 
her  death. 

During  the  latter  part  of  her  life,  she  had  many  and  . 
severe  attacks  of  illness,  and  perhaps  nothing  but  the 
skill  and  devoted  medical  services  of  her  physicians, 
and  the  almost  idolatrous  attentions  of  her  grand- 
daughters, kept  the  lamp  of  her  life  flickering  so  long. 
Her  grandsons,  too,  claimed  their  share  in  this  labor  of 
love,  and  when  the  telegraph  bore  to  their  distant  homes 
the  tidings  of  her  illness,  they  came  with  their  wives  to 
w^ait  at  her  bedside,  and  whatever  of  business  was  sus- 
pended or  neglected,  their  attentions  to  her  were  not 
relaxed  for  a  moment.  In  a  recent  letter  received  from 
a  oranddaughter  of  Mrs.  Harrison's,  this  paragraph  oc- 
curs: "Of  many  of  the  facts  of  her  later  life  I  was  an 
eye-witness,  as  I  was  an  inmate  of  my  father's  family  for 
three  years  previous  to  her  death,  and  had  the  ines- 
timable privilege  of  seeing  her  beautiful  Christian  resig- 
nation and  conformity  to  the  will  of  God  as  life  drew  to 
its  close.  Indeed,  it  was  upon  my  breast  that  she 
breathed  her  precious  life  awa)." 

Mrs.  Harrison  was  not  indifferent  to  the  political 
events  of  the  age  in  which  she  lived,  and  few  were  better 
informed  with  regard  to  public  men  and  measures  than 
herself.  Much  of  her  time  she  spent  in  reading,  during 
the  closing  years  of  her  life,  and  she  kept  herself  in- 
formed, through  the  medium  of  the  daily  papers,  of  the 
transactions  of  the  outside  world.     Very  few  persons  of 


A    SPARTAN    MOTHER.  363 

even  younger  years  took  a  greater  interest  In  the  move- 
ments of  the  armies  during  the  late  civil  war,  or  could 
give  a  more  succinct  and  graphic  account  of  the  details 
of  a  campaign. 

She  was  not  radical  in  her  sentiments,  and  indulged  in 
no  preconceived  prejudices  against  the  South  and  its 
objectionable  institution.  In  regard  to  the  holding  of 
slaves,  she  was  w-illing  that  all  should  be  fully  persuaded 
in  their  own  minds  as  to  its  propriety,  but  her  own  con- 
victions Avere  strongly  against  it. 

Many  of  her  grandsons  were  officers  and  soldiers  in 
the  Union  army,  and  as  occasion  would  permit,  they 
would  visit  her  to  ask  her  blessing  and  her  prayers. 
The  one  was  given  and  the  other  promised  with  a  patri- 
otic zeal  and  ardor  that  many  of  the  sterner  sex  might 
well  have  emulated. 

During  the  war,  a  grandson  and  member  of  the  family 
in  which  she  resided  came  home  on  a  brief  leave  of  ab- 
sence. The  day  of  his  departure  arrived,  and  he  went 
to  the  chamber  of  his  grandmother  to  take  what  he  sup- 
posed to  be  his  last  farewell  in  this  life,  as  she  was  then 
confined  to  her  bed  with  a  severe  illness.  She  received 
him  with  great  affection,  and  in  reply  to  his  expressions 
of  regret  at  leaving  her,  she  said,  "O,  no,  my  son,  your 
country  needs  your  services;  I  do  not.  Go  and  dis- 
charge your  duty  faithfully  and  fearlessly.  I  feel  that  my 
prayers  in  your  behalf  will  be  heard,  and  that  you  will  be 
returned  in  safety.  And  yet,  perhaps,  I  do  not  feel  as 
much  concerned  for  you  as  I  should :   I  have  parted  so 


364  ANNA    SYMMES    HARRISON. 

often  with  your  grandfather  under  similar  circumstances, 
and  he  was  always  returned  to  me  in  safety,  that  I  feel  it 
will  be  the  same  with  you." 

The  young  Captain  did  return  to  see  his  grand- 
mother again  in  this  life  after  several  hard-fought  batdes, 
in  which  he  received  complimentary  notice  from  his  com- 
manding officers.  Her  granddaughter  says  :  "  My  hus- 
band, Dr.  Eaton,  one  of  her  physicians  being  in  the 
house  and  an  invalid,  spent  much  of  his  time  in  her 
room,  and  would  often  say  to  me,  '  I  never  met  a  more 
entertaining  person  than  your  grandma.  I  could  sit  for 
hours  and  listen  to  her  conversation.'  Such  is  not  often 
said,  by  a  man  in  the  prime  of  life,  of  an  old  lady  nearly 
ninety  years  of  age.  Since  then  he  has  gone  to  join  her 
in  her  heavenly  home." 

Mrs.  Harrison's  distinguishing  characteristics  were 
her  Christian  humility  and  total  want  of  selfishness  ;  her 
modest,  retiring  manners  and  generosity  and  benevo- 
lence. She  was  always  anxious  to  promote  the  well- 
beincr  of  others  at  her  own  expense,  and  sacrificed  herself 
for  the  ofood  of  others. 

Many  incidents  of  generosity  are  remembered  and 
treasured  by  her  descendants,  which,  though  not  of  suffi- 
cient interest  to  record,  are  of  priceless  value  to  those 
who  witnessed  their  exhibition,  and  were  recipients  of 
her  beneficence. 

Every  public  and  private  charity  was  near  her  heart, 
and  received  liberally  from  her  hand.  But  those  who 
enjoyed  her  bounty  knew  not  of  its  source.     To  a  poor 


DIED    FEBRUARY    25,     1 864.  365 

minister  she  would  write :  "Accept  this  trifle  from  a 
friend."  To  the  Bethel  Sabbath  school,  "This  is  but  a 
widow's  mite."  To  the  suffering  poor  of  the  city,  "Please 
distribute  this  from  one  who  wishes  it  was  a  thousand 
times  more." 

She  continued  to  bear  on  her  praying  lips  the  salvation 
of  her  descendants,  and  as  she  drew  near  the  closing 
scene,  this  was  her  song : 

"  Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea 
But  that  thy  blood  was  shed  for  me, 
And  that  thou  hidd'st  me  come  to  thee, — 
O  Lamb  of  God  !  I  come." 

Her  intellectual  powers  and  physical  senses  were  re- 
tained to  the  last,  and  at  the  age  of  eighty-eight  she  was 
an  agreeable  companion  for  both  old  and  young. 

On  the  evening  of  the  25th  of  February,  1864,  in  the 
eighty-ninth  year  of  her  age,  Mrs.  Harrison  died  at  the 
residence  of  her  son. 

Her  funeral  took  place  at  the  Presbyterian  church  at 
Cleves,  on  Sunday,  February  the  28th.  The  sermon  was 
preached  by  the  Rev.  Horace  Bushnell,  from  the  text, 
"  Be  still  and  know  that  I  am  God."  The  selection  was 
made  by  herself  and  given  several  years  before  to  Mr. 
Bushnell,  her  pastor  and  intimate  friend  for  many  years. 
The  remains  were  deposited  beside  those  of  her  husband, 
and  they  together  sleep  by  the  banks  of  the  beautiful 
Ohio  at  North  Bend. 


XIII. 

LETITIA     CHRISTIAN     TYLER. 

The  first  wife  of  John  Tyler,  tenth  President  of  the 
United  States,  was  the  third  daughter  of  Robert  Chris- 
tian, Esq.,  of  Cedar  Grove,  in  New  Kent  county,  in  the 
State  of  Virginia;  a  gentleman  of  good  private  fortune, 
an  earnest  Federalist  of  that  day  in  his  political  opinions, 
and  an  attached  friend  and  adherent  of  George  Wash- 
ington. He  possessed  the  highest  social  and  political 
influence  in  the  county  of  his  residence,  and,  indeed, 
throuo;-hout  the  Peninsular  District,  embraced  between 
the  York  and  James  rivers.  Mis  house  was  the  seat  of 
genuine  Virginia  hospitality,  and  his  neighbors,  trusting 
implicitly  to  his  good  sense  and  integrity,  appealed  to  his 
arbitration  in  matters  involving  legal  controversy,  in 
preference  to  submitting  their  cases  in  the  courts.  For 
many  consecutive  years,  he  was  not  only  the  presiding 
magistrate  of  his  county,  but  also  its  representative  in 
the  Legislature  of  the  State;  and  his  brothers,  among 
whom  was  the  late  Major  Edmond  Christian,  of  Creigh- 
ton.  Marshal  of  Vireinia,  were  men  of  mark  and  in- 
fluence. 

This  worthy  gentleman  married  in  early  life  Mary 
Brown,  an  amiable  lady  of  high  worth  and  character, 
with  whom  he  lived  in  happiness  until  her  death,  and 
through  whom  he  was  blessed  with  a  large  family  of  sons 

""(366) 


i 


A    HARMONIZING    UNION.  367 

and  daughters ;  the  'iiales  being,  without  exception,  dis- 
tinguished for  their  personal  courage,  intelligence,  and 
graceful  appearance  and  manners,  and  the  daughters  for 
their  beauty,  piety,  and  domestic  virtues. 

Among  that  bevy  of  fair  daughters,  Letitia,  afterward 
Mrs.  T>-ler,  born  on  the  12th  of  November,  1790,  under 
the  paternal  roof  at  Cedar  Grove,  M'as,  perhaps,  the 
most  attractive  in  her  modest  refinement  and  striking 
loveliness  of  person  and  character;  and  although  always 
instinctively  shrinking  from  public  observation,  she  was 
refrarded  as  one  of  the  belles  of  Eastern  Viroinia,  Her 
hand  was  sought  in  marriage  by  many  suitors,  but  from 
the  number  who  presented  themselves — some  of  whom 
were  the  possessors  of  large  estates — her  heart  and 
excellent  judgment  selected  the  then  talented  and  rising 
young  lawyer,  wlio,  inheriting  the  unrivalled  popularity 
of  his  father.  Governor  John  Tyler,  with  a  mind  still 
more  brilh'ant  and  cultivated,  was  just  entering  upon 
that  remarkable  career  which  has  so  directly  and  power- 
fully impressed  his  genius,  not  only  on  the  history  of  his 
noble  old  State,  but  on  that  of  the  United  States  of 
America. 

The  marriage  of  tlie  youthful  pair,  on  the  29th  of 
March,  181 3,  she  being  in  the  twenty-second  year  of  her 
age,  and  he  having  completed  his  twenty-third  on  that 
day,  was  particularly  acceptable  to  both  houses ;  and 
Letitia  being  the  idol  of  her  brothers  and  sisters,  upon 
Mr.  Tyler  was  at  once  concentrated  the  unfailing  affec- 
tion  and   support — an  affection  and  support  which  at- 


368  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

tended  him  through  Hfe — of  every  member  of  the  nu- 
merous and  powerful  Christian  family,  harmonizing  to 
no  inconsiderable  extent  In  Lower  Virorlnia,  and  unitlnir 
in  his  favor  both  of  the  great  political  parties  of  the  day 
— his  own  father  having  been,  privately  and  publicly,  the 
constant  friend  of  Henry  and  of  Jefferson,  a  leader  In 
the  movement  and  war  of  Independence,  and  the  special 
representative  of  the  State  Rights  Republicans  In  his 
own  rln^ht,  and  Mr.  Robert  Christian  havlnor  been  the 
constant  friend  of  Washington,  and  a  prominent  leader 
and  representative  man  among  the  Federalists. 

The  wedding  festivities  over,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tyler  re- 
tired to  their  own  home  in  Charles  City  county,  a  part 
of  the  "  Greenway"  estate  of  his  father,  which  at  once 
became  an  object  of  attraction  and  intense  interest  to 
the  many  admirers,  friends,  and  relatives  of  its  happy 
inmates.  Dating  from  this  period  until  Mrs.  Tyler's 
death  in  the  Executive  Mansion,  at  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton, nearly  thirty  years  afterward,  nothing,  except  the 
loss  of  two  Infant  children  and  her  subsequent  Ill-health, 
ever  transpired  to  mar  the  felicity  of  this  auspicious 
union. 

In  the  unselfish,  constant,  and  vigilant  affection  of  his 
wife.  In  her  personal  charms,  in  her  strong  common 
sense  and  excellent  judgment,  in  her  unaffected  religious 
sentiments,  In  the  sweet  purity  of  her  gentle  life,  in  her 
parental  and  filial  devotion,  In  her  watchful  care  and  love 
for  her  children,  Mr.  Tyler  found  everything  to  satisfy 
his  affections  and  to  gratify  his  pride. 


A    LOVE-LEITER.  369 

In  his  admitted  integrity  and  worth  as  a  man  and 
citizen,  in  his  great  intellectual  powers,  in  his  constantly 
increasing  prosperity  and  rising  reputation,  in  the  ac- 
counts she  received  of  his  eloquence  both  at  the  bar  and 
in  the  legislature,  and  in  the  high  official  trusts  which 
ultimately  were  literally  showered  upon  him,  one  after 
the  other,  almost  without  intermission ;  and  finally  in  his 
tender  solicitude  to  restore  her  failing  health  and  to 
minister  to  her  slightest  wish,  she  discovered  all  that  her 
woman's  heart,  or  her  feminine  ambition  required,  to 
complete  and  secure  her  wedded  happiness.  The  fol- 
lowing letter,  the  first  that  Mr.  Tyler  ever  ventured  to 
address  to  her  before  marriaire,  and  the  on'fjinal  of 
which  is  still  preserved  in  the  family — apart  from  the 
natural  simplicity  of  its  style  and  the  ordinary  interest 
that  would  attach  to  it — not  only  presents  the  most 
unmistakable  evidence  of  the  sound  and  healthy  senti- 
ments, emotions,  and  principles  of  character  associated 
with  both  and  Impelling  to  their  union,  but  it  is  also  a 
remarkable  illustration,  In  view  of  a  long  engagement 
prior  to  marriage,  of  the  delicate  tone  and  exalted 
purity  of  the  social  structure  and  civilization  that  sur- 
rounded them  and  under  whose  happy  Influences  they 
were  born  and  reared. 

"  Richmond,  Decctnbcr  5///,  1812. 

"Although  I  could  not  entirely  obtain  your  permis- 
sion to  write  to  you,  yet  I  am  well  aware  that  you  will 

not  be  displeased  at  my  exercising  a  privilege  so  valu- 
24 


370  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

able  to  one  standing  in  the  relation  that  I  do  to  you. 
To  think  of  you  and  to  write  to  you,  are  the  only 
sources  from  whence  I  can  derive  any  real  satisfaction 
during  my  residence  in  this  place.  The  prerogative  of 
thinking  of  those  we  love,  and  from  whom  we  are  sepa- 
rated, seems  to  be  guaranteed  to  us  by  nature,  as  we 
cannot  be  deprived  of  it  either  by  the  bustle  and  confu- 
sion of  a  town,  or  by  the  important  duties  that  attach  to 
our  existence.  Believe  me,  my  L.,  that  this  observation 
has  been  completely  verified  by  me  since  I  last  saw  you, 
for  although  deafened  by  noise,  and  attentive  to  the 
duties  of  my  station,  yet  you  are  the  subject  of  my 
serious  meditations  and  the  object  of  my  fervent  prayers 
to  heaven.  From  the  first  moment  of  my  acquaintance 
with  you,  I  felt  the  influence  of  genuine  affection  ;  but 
now,  when  I  reflect  upon  the  sacrifice  which  you  make 
to  virtue  and  to  feeling,  by  conferring  your  hand  on  me, 
who  have  nothing  to  boast  of  but  an  honest  and  upright 
soul,  and  a  heart  of  purest  love,  I  feel  gratitude  super- 
added to  affection  for  you.  Indeed,  I  do  esteem  myself 
most  rich  in  possessing  you.  The  mean  and  sordid 
wretch  who  yields  the  unspeakable  bliss  of  possessing 
her  whom  he  ardently  loves,  may  boast  of  his  ill-ac- 
quired wealth,  and  display  his  treasures  in  all  the  pride 
of  ostentation  to  the  world,  but  who  shall  administer  to 
him  comfort  in  the  hour  of  affliction?  Whose  seraph 
smile  shall  chase  away  the  fiends  which  torment  him  ? 
The  partner  of  his  bosom  he  neither  esteems  nor  re- 
gards, and  he  knows  nothinij  of  the  balm  which  tender 


NAUGHT  BUT  LOVE  CAN  ANSWER  LOVE.      37 1 

affection  can  bestow.     Nature  will  be  still  true  to  her- 
self, for  as  your  favorite  Thomson  expresses  it, 

"  '  Nntiglit  but  love  can  answer  love, 
Or  render  bliss  secure.' 

"You  express  some  degree  of  astonishment,  my  L., • 
at  an  observation  I  once  made  to  you,  '  that  I  would  not 
have  been  willingly  wealthy  at  the  time  that  I  addressed 
you.'  Suffer  me  to  repeat  it.  If  I  had  been  wealthy, 
the  idea  of  your  being  actuated  by  prudential  consider- 
ations in  accepting  my  suit,  would  have  eternally  tor- 
tured me.  But  I  exposed  to  you  frankly  and  unblush- 
ingly  my  situation  in  life — my  hopes  and  my  fears,  my 
prospects  and  my  dependencies — and  )ou  nobly  re- 
sponded. To  ensure  to  you  happiness  is  nov/  my  only 
object,  and  whether  I  float  or  sink  in  the  stream  of 
fortune,  you  may  be  assured  of  this,  that  I  shall  nev^er 
cease  to  love  you.  Forgive  me  for  these  remarks, 
which  I  have  been  irresistibly  led  to  make. 

"  Colonel  Christian  will  deliver  you  this  letter,  together 
with  the  first  two  volumes  of  the  '  Forest  of  Montabano.' 
I  do  not  trouble  him  with  the  last  two  volumes,  for  fear 
of  incommoding  him,  and  because  I  shall  be  at  your 
father's  on  Wednesday  evening,  if  the  business  before 
the  Legislature  be  not  very  important.  You  will  feel 
much  sympathy  for  the  unfortunate  Angelina,  and 
admiration  for  the  character  of  good  Father  Patrick. 
Frederick  is  inexplicable  until  the  last  volume  is 
read. 


372  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

"Again  suffer  me  to  assure  you  of  my  constant 
esteem  and  affection,  and  believe  me  to  be  yours  most 
faithfully,  "  John  Tyler. 

"To  Miss  Letitia  Christian, 
"  New  Kent." 

Mrs.  Letitia  Semple,  the  only  surviving  daughter  of 
Mrs.  Letitia  Tyler,  says,  regarding  this  letter,  "  I  enclose 
you  a  copy  of  the  first  letter  my  father  ever  wrote  to 
my  mother  ;  and  I  had  a  book  of  original  sonnets  written 
by  him  in  his  youthful  days,  many  of  which  were  ad- 
dressed to  her;  for  he  was  full  of  music  and  full  of 
poetry  and  possessed  an  exquisite  literary  taste  ;  but  this 
book  has  been  lost  to  us,  in  one  of  my  writing  desks 
stolen  durincf  the  war. 

"  My  father  and  my  mother  were  born  in  the  same 
year — that  of  1 790,  he  being  from  the  29th  March  to  the 
1 2th  November  older  than  she  was.  They  were  mar- 
ried on  father's  twenty-third  birthday  following  that  of 
his  birth,  after  a  courtship  and  engagement  of  nearly 
five  years.  He  met  her  for  the  first  time  at  a  private 
party  in  the  neighborhood,  while  on  a  visit  to  '  Green- 
way,'  the  home  residence  of  grandfather  Tyler,  in  Charles 
City  county,  adjoining  that  of  New  Kent,  where  grand- 
father Christian  resided  at  '  Cedar  Grove.'  He  had 
already  taken  his  collegiate  degrees  at  William  and 
Mary  College  when  scarcely  more  than  seventeen  years 
old,  and  was  at  the  time  a  law  student  in  Richmond, 
under  the  special  office  counsel  and  instruction  of  the 


AN    ELEGANT    REFINEMENT.  2)73 

celebrated  Edmund  Randolph,  justly  esteemed  as  the 
father  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  as  Mr. 
Jefferson  u'as  of  the  Declaration  of  American  Independ- 
ence, and  who  had  been  the  Attorney-General  of  Presi- 
dent Washington,  and  the  Secretary  of  State  of  President 
Jefferson,  my  grandfather  Tyler  being  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  then  residing  in  Richmond.  After  their  troth 
was  plighted,  he  had  been  twice  or  thrice  elected  to  the 
State  Legislature  before  their  marriao^e  was  solemnized; 
and  his  last  visit  to  her  at '  Cedar  Grove  '  was  only  three 
weeks  before  the  wedding,  yet  I  have  heard  him  repeat- 
edly say  that,  '  then,  for  the  first  time,  he  ventured  to  kiss 
her  hand  on  parting,  so  perfectly  reserved  and  modest 
had  she  always  been.' 

"  My  mother's  mother  was  Mary  Brown,  of  the  same 
family  with  that  of  the  late  Judge  John  Brown,  of  Wil- 
liamsburg, and  Professor  Dabney  Brown,  of  William 
and  Mary  College,  the  former  of  whom  finally  moved  to 
Kentucky,  and  the  latter  more  recently  to  California; 
and  with  that  of  the  Hon.  James  Halyburton,  late  Judge 
of  the  United  States  District  Court  of  Virginia,  and  of  the 
Hon.  John  M.  Gregory,  late  Judge  of  th-e  Henrico  Circuit 
and  Governor  o(  \^irginia  ;  and  as  to  the  late  Judge 
Christian,  and  the  present  Judge  Christian,  of  the  Penin- 
sular Circuit  and  of  the  General  Court  of  X'^irginia,  the 
first  was  her  son,  and  the  last  her  cousin,  as  are  also  the 
present  Doctors  W^illiam  and  Edward  Warren,  formerly 
of  Edenton,  North  Carolina,  whither  they  moved  from 
New  Kent  in  Virginia,  but  now  of  Baltimore." 


374  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

Not  long  after  her  marriage,  Mrs.  Tyler  had  the  mis- 
fortune to  lose  both  of  her  parents,  and  now  having  two 
less  to  love  in  this  world,  she  freely  gave  the  share  which 
had  been  theirs,  to  her  husband  and  her  children,  and  to 
her  sisters  and  her  brothers.  In  truth,  at  no  period  of 
her  life  does  it  seem  that  she  existed  for  herself,  but  onl> 
for  those  near  and  dear  to  her. 

She  was  noted  for  the  beauty  of  her  person  and  of 
her  features,  for  the  ease  and  grace  of  her  carriage,  for 
a  delicate  refinement  of  taste  in  dress  that  excluded 
with  precision  every  color  and  ornament  not  stricdy  be- 
coming and  harmonizing  in  the  general  effect.  Possess- 
incr  an  acute  nervous  ors^anization  and  sensitive  tern- 
perament,.  combined  with  an  unusually  correct  judgment, 
any  observant  stranger  of  polished  education  would 
have  been  almost  unconsciously  attracted  to  her  among 
thousands  by  her  air  of  quiet  courtesy  and  benignity. 
With  these  engaging  qualities,  and  the  social  advan- 
tao-es  attaching  to  her  position,  she  could  easily  have 
impressed  her  power  upon  what  is  termed  society  had 
she  so  desired,  still  she  never  aspired  to  wield  the 
sceptre  of  fashion,  and  never  sought  to  attract  attention 
beyond  the  Hmits  of  her  own  family,  and  the  circle  of 
her  immediate  friends  and  relatives. 

She  modestly  shrank  from  aJl  notoriety  and  evaded 
the  public  eye  as  much  as  possible.  She  had  not  the 
faintest  wish  to  enjoy  the  reputation  of  authoress  or  wit, 
or  for  maintaining  an  ascendency  in  the  company  of 
brilliant  men  and  women  of  the  world.     She  was  per- 


WIFE    AND    MOTHER.  375 

fectly  content  to  be  seen  only  as  a  part  of  the  existence 
of  her  beloved  husband ;  to  entertain  her  neighbors  in 
her  own  easy,  hospitable,  and  unostentatious  way;  to 
converse  with  visitors  on  current  topics  intelligently;  to 
sit  gently  by  her  child's  cradle,  reading,  knitting,  or 
sewing;  or  else  to  while  away  pleasant  hours  in  the  en- 
dearing companionship  of  her  sisters  and  her  intimate 
acquaintances. 

It  appears  that,  though  she  resided  in  Richmond 
during  the  period  that  Mr.  Tyler  was  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  did  the  honors  of  the  Executive  Dwelling  of 
the  State  with  ease,  and  grace,  and  singular  discretion, 
winning  the  commendation  of  all  at  a  time  when  the 
metropolis  of  Virginia  was  unexcelled  upon  the  Ameri- 
can continent,  either  in  respect  to  elegant  men  or  ac- 
complished women;  yet  that  she  had  rarely  visited  the 
city  while  he  w-as  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  and  that 
during  his  long  term  of  service  as  Representative  and 
Senator  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States — having 
been  three  times  elected  to  the  House  and  twice  to  the 
Senate, — she  suffered  herself  to  be  persuaded  only  once 
to  pass  a  winter  in  Washington,  and  at  the  end  of 
another  session  only  reluctantly  consented,  at  his  earnest 
entreaty,  to  visit  one  summer  the  gay  centres  and 
resorts  of  the  North. 

When  either  her  own  health,  or  that  of  her  husband, 
or  that  of  her  children,  absolutely  required  a  change  of 
air  and  scene,  as  several  times  happened,  she  vastly  pre- 
ferred the  bracing  temperature  and  invigorating  atm.os- 


378  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

Episcopal  Church,  and  In  early  life  became  a  consistent 
communicant.  At  every  stage  of  her  existence  she  was 
pervaded  by  a  deep  religious  sentiment,  and  the  Bible 
was  her  constant  companion.  For  her  neighborly  and 
charitable  nature  she  w^as  proverbial.  Although  every 
one  who  knew  her  as  a  young  unmarried  lady,  and 
nearly  all  of  her  contemporaries  in  more  advanced  years, 
are  now  dead,  still  her  reputation  in  these  respects 
abides  among  the  living,  and  is  particularly  referred  to 
and  commented  upon  in  every  communication  we  re- 
ceived concerning  her,  as  well  as  in  all  of  her  obituaries 
that  we  have  read.  And  one  of  the  most  beautiful  traits 
in  her  lovely  and  almost  faultless  character,  in  the  midst 
of  all  her  mildness,  meekness,  gentleness  and  amiability, 
was  the  perfect  self-respect  which  constantly  attended 
her,  beatine  in  unison  with  her  true  woman's  soul,  suffer- 
ing  no  encroachment  upon  true  propriety  and  decorum 
in  her  presence,  and  sustaining  her  dignity  as  a  Virginia 
matron,  which  never,  under  any  circumstances  whatever, 
deserted  her. 

Mrs.  Robert  Tyler,  the  wife  of  her  oldest  son,  thus 
wrote  concerning  her,  at  her  own  home,  in  the  bosom  of 
her  own  family.  In  the  old  city  of  Williamsburg,  Virginia, 
under  the  first  Impressions  she  received  after  she  was 
married  In  Pennsylvania,  to  her  sisters  at  the  North : 

"  Williamsburg,  Virginia,  October,  1839. 

*  *  *  "The  bridal  festivities  SO  profusely  extended 
to  us  in  Charles  City,  that  most  hospitable  of  counties, 
ended  last  week.     My  honeymoon  has  waned,  and  I  have 


A   BEAUTifUI     LIFE.  379 

at  last  settled  clown  at  home.  If  I  can  ever  learn  to 
think  any  place  a  home  where  my  own  dear  father  and 
sisters  are  not,  I  certainly  can  do  so  here,  for  a  new- 
father  and  mother  have  opened  their  arms  and  their 
hearts  to  me  ;  new  and  lovely  sisters  cluster  around  me; 
and  I  am  welcomed  and  approved  of  by  any  number  of 
uncles,  aunts  and  cousins.  The  introduction  to  all  of 
them  was  an  awful  ordeal  to  go  through,  you  may  be 
sure,  but  it  is  happily  over,  and  I  have  now  settled  my- 
self down  absolutely  as  one  of  the  family,  I  know  you 
want  me  to  tell  you  of  each  separate  member,  and  of  the 
house,  and  all  my  surroundings, 

"  You  know  how  entirely  charming  Mr.  Tyler's  father 
is,  for  you  saw  him  at  my  wedding  in  Bristol,  but  you 
cannot  imagine  the  tenderness  and  kindness  with  which 
he  received  me,  his  'new  daughter,'  as  he  called  me,  Mr. 
Tyler's  mother  is  very  much  as  I  imagined  her  from  his 
description.  She  must  have  been  very  beautiful  in  her 
youth,  for  she  is  still  beautiful  now  in  her  declining  years 
and  wretched  health.  Her  skin  is  as  smooth  and  soft  as 
a  baby's ;  she  has  sweet,  loving  black  eyes,  and  her  fea- 
tures are  delicately  moulded ;  besides  this  her  feet  and 
hands  are  perfect ;  and  she  is  gentle  and  graceful  in  her 
movements,  with  a  most  peculiar  air  of  native  refinement, 
about  everything  she  says  and  does.  She  is  the  most 
entirely  unselfish  person  you  can  imagine.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve she  ever  thinks  of  herself.  Her  whole  thouc^ht  and 
affections  are  wrapped  up  m  her  husband  and  children; 
and  I  thank  God  I  am  numbered  with  those  dear  chil- 


;^'jS  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

Episcopal  Church,  and  hi  early  life  became  a  consistent 
communicant.  At  every  stage  of  her  existence  she  was 
pervaded  by  a  deep  religious  sentiment,  and  the  Bible 
was  her  constant  companion.  For  her  neighborly  and 
charitable  nature  she  was  proverbial.  Although  every 
one  who  knew  her  as  a  young  unmarried  lady,  and 
nearly  all  of  her  contemporaries  in  more  advanced  years, 
are  now  dead,  still  her  reputation  in  these  respects 
abides  among  the  living,  and  is  particularly  referred  to 
and  commented  upon  in  every  communication  we  re- 
ceived concerning  her,  as  well  as  in  all  of  her  obituaries 
that  we  have  read.  And  one  of  the  most  beautiful  traits 
in  her  lovely  and  almost  faultless  character,  in  the  midst 
of  all  her  mildness,  meekness,  gentleness  and  amiability, 
was  the  perfect  self-respect  which  constantly  attended 
her,  beating  in  unison  with  her  true  woman's  soul,  suffer- 
ing no  encroachment  upon  true  propriety  and  decorum 
in  her  presence,  and  sustaining  her  dignity  as  a  Virginia 
matron,  which  never,  under  any  circumstances  whatever, 
deserted  her. 

Mrs.  Robert  Tyler,  the  wife  of  her  oldest  son,  thus 
wrote  concerning  her,  at  her  own  home,  in  the  bosom  of 
her  own  family,  in  the  old  city  of  Williamsburg,  Virginia, 
under  the  first  impressions  she  received  after  she  was 
married  in  Pennsylvania,  to  her  sisters  at  the  North : 

"  Williamsburg,  Virginia,  October,  1839. 

*  *  '==  "The  bridal  festivities  SO  profusely  extended 
to  us  in  Charles  City,  that  most  hospitable  of  coundes, 
ended  last  week.     My  honeymoon  has  waned,  and  I  have 


A    BEAUTifUI     LIFE.  379 

at  last  settled  down  at  home.  If  I  can  over  learn  to 
think  any  place  a  home  wlicre  my  own  dear  father  anil 
sisters  are  not,  I  certainly  can  do  so  here,  for  a  new 
father  and  mother  have  opened  their  arms  and  their 
hearts  to  me;  new  and  lovely  sisters  cluster  around  me; 
and  I  am  welcomed  and  approved  of  by  any  number  of 
uncles,  aunts  and  cousins.  The  introduction  to  all  of 
them  was  an  awful  ordeal  to  go  through,  you  may  be 
sure,  but  it  is  happily  over,  and  I  have  now  settled  my- 
self down  absolutely  as  one  of  the  family,  I  know  you 
want  me  to  tell  you  of  each  separate  member,  and  of  the 
housr,  and  all  my  surroundings. 

"You  know  how  entirely  charming  Mr.  Tyler's  father 
is,  for  you  saw  him  at  my  wedding  in  Bristol,  but  you 
cannot  imagine  the  tenderness  and  kindness  with  which 
he  received  me,  his  'new  daughter,'  as  he  called  me.  Mr. 
Tyler's  mother  is  ver)'  much  as  I  imagined  her  from  his 
description.  She  must  have  been  very  beautiful  in  her 
youth,  for  she  is  still  beautiful  now  in  her  declining  years 
and  wretched  health.  I  Icr  skin  is  as  smooth  and  soft  as 
a  baby's ;  she  has  sweet,  loving  black  eyes,  and  her  fea- 
tures are  delicately  moulded ;  besides  this  her  feet  and 
hands  are  perfect ;  and  she  is  gentle  and  graceful  in  her 
movements,  with  a  most  peculiar  air  of  native  refinement, 
about  everything  she  says  and  does.  She  is  the  most 
entirely  unselfish  person  you  can  imagine.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve she  ever  thinks  of  herself.  Her  whole  thought  and 
affections  are  wrapped  up  m  iier  husband  and  children; 
and   I   thank  God  I  am   numbered  with  those  dear  chil- 


380  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    T\XER. 

dren,  and  can  partake  with  them  in  the  blessing  of  hei 
love.  May  He  give  me  grace  to  be  ever  a  kind  and 
lovinor  dauorhter  to  her. 

o  o 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  S: 

"The  house  is  very  large  and  very  airy  and  pleasant, 
fronting  on  a  large  lawn  and  surrounded  by  a  most 
beautiful  garden.  The  parlor  is  comfortably  furnished, 
and  has  that  homelike  and  occupied  look  which  is  so 
nice.  The  prettiest  thing  in  it,  to  my  taste,  though  very 
old-fashioned,  is  the  paper  upon  the  walls,  which  depicts 
in  half  life-size  pictures  the  adventures  of  Telemachus 
on  Calypso's  enchanted  isle.  Telemachus  is  very  hand- 
some. Calypso  and  her  nymphs  as  graceful  as  possible  ; 
and  old  Mentor  as  disao-reeable  and  stern  as  all  Mentors 
usually  are.  I  find  something  new  In  the  paper  every 
day,  and  love  to  study  it.  The  dining-room  is  opposite 
the  parlor,  across  a  broad  passage,  kept  too  bright  and 
shiny  almost  to  step  upon,  and  is  also  a  very  spacious 
room,  with  a  great  deal  of  old  family  silver  adorning  the 
sideboard,  and  some  good  pictures  upon  the  walls. 
There  are  two  other  rooms  behind  the  parlor  and  the 
dining-room,  one  of  which  is  used  as  a  sitting  and  read- 
ing-room, for  it  is  a  large  double  house,  flanked  by  offices 
in  the  yard  in  which  the  library  is  kept,  and  one  of  which 
is  used  for  law  and  business  purposes  by  Mr.  Tyler's 
father  and  himself. 

"  The  room  in  the  main  dwellinof  furthest  removed  and 
most  retired  is  '  the  chamber,'  as  the  bedroom  of  the  mis- 
tress of  the  house  is  always  called  in  Virginia.    This  last. 


THE    BIBLE    AND    PRAYER-BOOK.  38 1 

to  say  nothing  of  others,  or  of  the  kitchen,  storerooms 
and  pantries,  is  a  most  quiet  and  comfortable  retreat, 
with  an  air  of  repose  and  sanctity  about  it ;  at  least  I 
feel  it  so,  and  often  seek  refuge  here  from  the  company, 
and  beaux,  and  laughing  and  talking  of  the  other  parts 
of  the  house ;  for  here  mother,  with  a  smile  of  welcome 
on  her  sweet,  calm  face,  is  always  found  seated  on  her 
large  arm-chair  with  a  small  stand  by  her  side,  which 
holds  her  Bible  and  her  prayer-book — the  only  books 
she  ever  reads  now — with  her  knitting  usually  in  her 
hands,  always  ready  to  sympathize  with  me  in  any  little 
homesickness  which  may  disturb  me,  and  to  ask  me 
questions  about  all  you  dear  ones  in  Bristol,  because  she 
knows  I  want  to  talk  about  you.  Notwithstanding  her 
very  delicate  health,  mother  attends  to  and  regulates  all 
the  household  affairs,  and  all  so  quietly  that  you  can't 
tell  when  she  does  it.  All  the  clothes  for  the  children, 
and  for  the  servants,  are  cut  out  under  her  immediate  eye, 
and  all  the  sewing  is  personally  superintended,  by  her. 
All  the  cake,  jellies,  custards,  and  we  indulge  largely  in 
them,  emanate  from  her,  yet  you  see  no  confusion,  hear 
no  bustle,  but  only  meet  the  agreeable  result.  '''  *  *  * 
All  Mr.  Tyler's  sisters  are  lovely  and  sweet.  Sister 
Mary — Mrs.  Jones,  who  is  the  oldest  of  all — I  have 
already  introduced  you  to  in  my  letter  from  Charles 
City,  where  she  resides,  at  '  Woodburn,'  one  of  the  plan- 
tations or  '  farms '  as  they  are  called  here,  of  her  hus- 
band, and  where  she  so  happily  entertained  us  recently. 
Next  comes  Letitia,  Mrs.  Semple,  married  last  February. 


352  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER, 

She  is  very  handsome  and  full  of  life  and  spirits.  She 
has  a  place  called  'Cedar  Hill,'  some  distance  from  Wil- 
liamsburg, in  New  Kent  county,  but  is  now  here  on  a 
visit.  Then  comes  Elizabeth,  a  very  great  belle  here, 
though  she  is  not  yet  seventeen.  She  is  remarkably 
sweet  and  pretty,  with  beautiful  eyes  and  complexion, 
and  her  hair  curled  down  her  neck.  John,  who  is  next 
to  Mr,  Tyler  in  age,  and  who  was  at  my  wedding,  and 
therefore  needs  no  description,  is  not  here  now,  but  he 
and  his  wife  will  spend  next  winter  with  his  father,  as  he 
still  attends  the  law  department  and  higher  scientific 
courses  of  'William  and  Mary'  college,  as  it  is  termed 
in  accordance  with  the  original  charter  of  King  William 
and  Queen  Mary,  although  it  is  now  and  has  been  for 
many  years  a  university. 

"  I  have  not  seen  her  yet,  but  hear  that  she  is  very 
beautiful.  The  two  younger  children,  Alice  and  Taze- 
well, make  up  the  family.  ""  •''  '•'  The  children,  with 
all  the  rest  of  the  family,  seem  very,  very  fond  of  me,  but 
you  must  not  suppose  that  all  this  affection  and  kindness 
makes  me  vain.  It  is  very  comforting  and  sweet,  but  I 
know  they  all  love  me  from  no  merit  of  my  own,  but  from 
the  devotion  the  whole  family  feel  for  Mr.  Tyler,  who  is 
idolized  by  his  parents,  and  profoundly  loved  and 
respected  by  his  brothers  and  sisters."  * 

*The  ancient  Tylers  of  Virginia,  of  whom  but  few  are  left  in  the  State,  were  from 
a  younger  branch  of  the  Tylers  of  Shropshire,  in  Wales,  bordering  on  England. 
John  and  Henry,  brothers,  came  to  Virginia  in  the  beginning  of  the  settlement,  an;i 
finally  took  up  their  abode  in  the  "  Middle  Plantations  "  between  Jamestown  and 
Yorktown,  in  1636. 


EARLY    CCMPAXTONS    GONE.  383 

Mrs.  Letitia  Seniple,  in  a  letter  addressed  lo  her 
brother,  and  which  he  kindly  placed  at  my  disposal,  thus 
writes : 

******  "It  is  a  sad  truth,  but 
I  know  of  no  one  now  alive  who  remembers  my  mother 
in  her  youth.  As  late  as  1861,  there  were  several  who 
had  known  her  from  infanc)',  but  now  they  are  all  gone. 
We  have  not  an  uncle,  or  an  aunt,  of  all  our  once  numer- 
ous family,  left  on  earth.  The  early  portion  of  her  life 
must  be  gleaned  from  the  little  incidents  we,  her  children, 
may  remember  to  have  been  recited  concerning  her,  by 
those  now  dead.  Apart  from  ourselves,  there  are  those 
who  may  recall  something  of  her  married  life,  but  these 
have  been  scattered  by  the  events  of  the  war  far  and  wade 
asunder.  Her  character  was  so  unobtrusive,  and  her 
personal  deportment  was  so  little  influenced  by  a  desire 
to  shine  before  the  public  eye,  that  those  alone  best  knew 
her  who  were  intimately  associated  with  the  family  as 
near  relatives,  or  as  private  friends.  Our  older  and  two 
younger  sisters  are  dead  ;  our  elder  brother,  and  one 
younger,  the  one  driven  by  the  relentless  fates  to  Ala- 
bama, and  the  other  to  California,  and  you,  the  sport  of 


President  Tyler  was  the  fifth  John  from  the  first  of  the  name.  The  older  line  in. 
Shropshire,  now  divided,  still  maintain  their  status  there,  represented  by  the  present 
Sir  Charles,  son  of  the  late  Sir  W^llia-.n.  The  Tylers  of  the  North  have  never  been 
able  to  trace  any  connection  or  common  origin  with  those  of  Virginia,  either  in  iheir 
correspondence  with  the  first  Governor  Tyler,  or  with  President  Tyler;  but  of  recent 
years  many  have  poured  into  Eastern  Virginia,  and  some  have  now  purchased  estates 
that  formerly  belonged  to  the  ancient  Virginia  family.  History  in  the  future  will 
doubtless,  under  these  circumstances,  become  confused  on  the  subject. 


384  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN   TYLER. 

a  similar  fatality,  together  with  myself,  may  recollect  many 
little  things  sacred  to  filial  devotion.  The  beautiful  affec- 
tion ever  manifested  toward  her  by  every  member  of 
the  family — by  her  uncles  and  her  aunts,  by  her  sisters 
and  her  brothers,  her  nephews  and  her  nieces,  and  by  her 
cousins,  male  and  female — by  all  without  exception — we 
know  of,  and  can  speak  to  the  fact.  It  was  with  each  one 
of  them  the  unadulterated  affection  of  the  heart  for  piety, 
purity  and  goodness.  There  was  nothing  else  to  attract 
it,  for  their  mere  worldly  circumstances  were,  in  every 
direction,  fully  equal  to  her  own,  and  in  many  instances 
superior  in  affluence  to  those  she  enjoyed.  Nothing 
could  have  exceeded  the  devotional  regard  of  her  sister 
Anna,  the  owner  of  the  paternal  estate  of  Cedar  Grove, 
and  w'ho  in  addition  to  her  own  inheritance,  had  derived 
a  large  fortune  by  marriage  and  the  early  death  of  her 
hysband,  Mr.  Savage.  And  I  have  often  heard  aunt 
Elizabeth  Douglas,  her- oldest  sister,  speak  of  her  obe- 
dient disposition  and  truthfulness  as  a  child,  and  of  her 
almost  surpassing  beauty,  grace,  elegance,  and  refine- 
ment in  riper  years.  We  ourselves  know  how  exem- 
plary a  wdfe  and  mother  she  was.  One  of  the  earliest 
memories  I  have  of  her  is,  that  she  taught  me  my  letters 
out  of  the  family  Bible.  Over  and  often  can  I  recall  her 
with  a  book  in  her  lap,  reading  and  reflecting,  while  her 
fincrers  were  knitting  or  stitchino-  for  some  of  us  ;  or 
while  watching  over  us  until  a  late  hour  of  the  night,  in 
the  absence  of  our  father  upon  his  public  duties. 

"You  know  that  these  days  of  our  childhood  were 


A    HUSBAND    CONSULTS    HIS    WIFE.  385 

days  of  struggle  with  our  father,  under  heavy  security 
obligations,  and  she  had  but  one  idea  apart  from  conjugal 
piety  and  affection,  and  that  was  to  save  him  from  every 
care  and  every  expense  in  her  power. 

"  His  pecuniary  independence  was  preserved,  and 
much  of  his  success  was  secured,  through  her  economy, 
her  diligence,  her  providence,  and  her  admirable  self- 
sacrificing  demeanor.  I  have  frequently  heard  our 
father  say  that  he  rarely  failed  to  consult  her  judgment 
in  the  midst  of  difficulties  and  troubles,  and  that  she 
invariably  led  him  to  the  best  conclusion,  and  that  he  had 
never  known  her  to  speak  unkindly  of  any  one.  She 
was  permitted  to  see  him  fill  the  highest  office  in  the  gift 
q(  his  country,  but  before  he  was  suffered  to  enter  intC' 
Ids  rest  from  political  life,  she  had  gone  to  that  r(  st  re- 
r.iaining  for  the  people  of  God.  She  died,  as  you  know, 
cin  the  loth  September,  1842,  in  the  Executive  Mansion 
at  Washinofton,  where  her  third  daughter,  our  sister 
Elizabeth  Waller,  had  been  shortly  before  married,  and 
where  two  of  her  grandchildren  now^  living, — the  oldest 
daughter  of  our  brother  Robert,  named  Letitia,  and  the 
youiigest  son  of  our  sister  Mary,  named  Robert — were 
born. 

"  You  remember  her  fondness  for  fiowers.  Her  fa- 
vorite flower  was  the  monthly  damask  rose,  and  that 
brought  in  to  her  on  the  morning  of  the  day  of  her 
death,  was  found  clasped  in  her  hand  when  the  spirit  was 
fled.     From  the  time  that  she  had  been  first  stricken  by 

paralysis,  her  health  had  been  frail,  but  none  of  us  antic- 
25 


386  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

ipated  an  immediate,  or  even  an  early  renewal  of  the 
attack,  and  far  less  a  sudden  dissolution  of  her  system  ; 
and  I  had  closed  my  last  visit  to  her  only  a  few  days 
before,  and  had  gone  to  'Cedar  Grove'  to  inform  Aunt 
Anne  of  the  condition  in  which  I  had  left  her,  as  if  the 
sad  Fates  had  carried  me  there  to  be  ready  to  receive 
her  remains,  returning  to  the  place  of  their  birth  to 
repose,  in  their  separation  from  her  husband,  by  the  side 
of  those  of  her  father  and  her  mother,  as  when  first 
quickened  into  life;  but  our  sister,  Elizabeth  Waller,  and 
our  Aunt  Elizabeth  Douglas,  were  with  her,  and  wit- 
nessed her  last  breath,  and  they  told  me  this  particularly 
sweet  circumstance  of  her  favorite  rose  still  clinging  to 
her  hand  in  death." 

These  letters,  taken  with  the  obituaries  subjoined,  and 
the  lines  of  Mr.  Sargent,  together  with  other  communi- 
cations descriptive  of  the  daily  social  routine  in  the 
"White  House"  at  this  epoch,  which  remain  to  be  sub- 
mitted and  cannot  fail  to  interest,  leave  but  little  neces- 
sary to  fill  out  and  perfect  the  portraiture  of  one  of  the 
loveliest  characters  in  history. 

Upon  the  accession  of  her  husband  to  the  Presidential 
office  in  the  beginning  of  April,  1841,  Mrs.  Tyler  pro- 
ceeded with  him  to  the  Executive  Mansion  of  the  nation, 
at  Washington,  but  with  many  sighs  and  tears  at  parting 
with  her  own  home,  and  without  the  thought  of  personal 
triumphs  in  the  world  of  fashion  and  display.  She  re- 
signed herself  to  the  change  simply  to  be  with  her  loved 
ones,  and  to  receive  the  tender  care  and  attention  of 


DEVOTED    CHILDREN.  387 

those  in  whom  she  literally  "lived  and  had  her  being." 
Her  health  had  become  greatly  impaired  from  a  severe 
attack  of  illness  during  the  year  1839,  and  her  condition 
remained  as  has  been  described  by  her  daughter-in-law, 
Mrs.  Robert  Tyler,  then  to  have  been  in  the  month  of 
October.  Nevertheless,  in  all  the  private  apartments  of 
the  President's  mansion,  the  same  modes  of  life  were 
maintained  as  those  to  which  she  had  ever  been  accus- 
tomed. Her  sisters  and  brothers  and  other  relatives,  as 
well  as  her  children,  still  hovered  around  her,  as  they 
had  always  clone,  with  increased  and  increasing  affection 
as  they  discovered  her  frame  becoming  somewhat  more 
feeble.  She  passed  her  time  chiefly  in  their  society, 
receivinor  but  few  visitors  and  returnino-  no  visits.  Her 
health,  indeed,  required  that  she  should  delegate  to 
some  one  of  her  married  daughters  the  semi-official 
duties  of  her  position. 

For  the  greater  part  of  the  time,  her  own  married 
daughters,  Mrs.  Jones*  and  Mrs.  Semple,  were  com- 
pelled by  their  domestic  duties,  in  the  line  of  the  private 


*  Mary,  the  first  child  and  oldest  daughter  of  Mrs.  I.etitia  Tyler,  in  her  features 
bore  a  marked  but  refined  and  delicate  likeness  to  her  father,  and  strikingly  blended 
in  her  character  the  admirable  attributes  of  both  father  and  mother.  She  was  a 
lady  of  the  most  exalted  worth  and  lovely  mould.  She  married,  at  an  early  age, 
Mr.  Henry  Lightfoot  Jones,  of  Charles  City  county,  Virginia,  and  died  after  her 
mother,  leaving  an  infant  daughter  that  soon  followed  her  spirit,  and  three  sons,  two 
of  whom  only  survive,  Henry  and  Robert,  who  fought  in  the  ranks  in  Lee's  army, 
both  being  mentioned  in  orders,  and  the  latter  of  whom,  born  in  the  "  White 
House,"  was  promoted  for  a  feat  of  daring  gallantry  and  three  wounds  received  at 
Gettysburg,  to  a  first-lieutenancy. 


388  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

affairs  and  personal  interests  of  their  husbands,  to  re- 
main at  their  respective  residences  in  Virginia,  but 
frequently  coming  to  Washington,  for  brief  periods,  it  is 
true,  through  solicitude  for  her  health  and  to  bestow 
their  affection  upon  her;  and  as  regards  her  two  remain- 
ing daughters,  Elizabeth,  afterwards  Mrs,  Waller,  was 
just  grown  up  to  womanhood,  and  was  not  yet  married; 
and  Alice,  afterward  Mrs.  Henry  M.  Denison,*  was  still 
but  a  child.  However  it  fortunately  so  happened  that 
her  oldest  son  and  his  wife  had  not  permanently  located 
themselves  in  life  since  their  recent  marriage,  and  it  was 
considered  best  they  should  continue  in  the  family. 
Sometimes,  on  the  temporary  visits  of  Mrs.  Jones  and 
Mrs.  Semple,  all  her  married  daughters  would  appear 
together  in  the  Reception-rooms  ;  but  under  the  circum- 
stances, the  constant  task  of  representing  her  mother,  in 
respect  to  the  honors  of  the  establishment,  was  dele- 
gated, with  the  consent  of  the  President,  to  Mrs.  Robert 
Tyler,f    a    lady   of  admirable  culture    and    address,   to 

*  Alice,  fourth  and  last  daughter  of  Mrs.  Letitia  Tyler,  resembled  her  mother  in 
features  more  than  any  other  child.  She  married,  years  after  her  mother's  death, 
the  Rev.  Henry  M.  Denison,  of  Wyoming,  Pennsylvania,  a  clergyman  of  marked 
ability,  eloquence,  and  conscientiousness,  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  and 
Rector,  at  the  time,  of  old  Bruton  Parish  Church,  at  Williamsburg,  Virginia.  She 
died  while  he  was  assistant  to  the  Bishop  of  Kentucky,  at  Louisville,  and  he  died 
•while  Rector  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  a  victim  to  his  high  sense  of  duty  to 
his  congregation  during  the  prevalence  of  the  yellow  fever  in  that  city  before  the 
war.  They  left  an  infant  daughter  named  Elizabeth,  who  has  been  reared  and  edu- 
cated by  her  aunt,  Mrs.  Letitia  Tyler  Semple. 

f  Mrs.  Robert  Tyler,  wife  of  the  second  child  and  oldest  son  of  Mrs.  Letitia 
Tyler,  is  the  daughter  of  Thomas  Abthorpe  Cooper,  the  distinguished  tragedian,  air 


A    MARRIAGE    IN    THE   WHITE    HOUSE.  389 

whom  she  was,  as  well  as  the  rest  of  the  family,  de- 
votedly attached  as  to  her  own  daughter.  One  of  the 
few  occasions  on  which  she  assented  to  appear  per- 
sonally in  the  public  Reception-rooms,  before  a  large 
and  distintjuished  assemblajje  of  men  and  women  asso- 
ciated  with  the  world  of  fashion  and  that  of  politics  and 
diplomacy,  was  that  of  the  marriage  of  her  daughter 
Elizabeth,  and  is  thus  portrayed  by  Mrs.  Robert  T}ler 
shortly  afterward,  In  a  letter  addressed  to  her  relatives 
near  Philadelphia  : 

"Washington,  February,  1842. 

*         *         *         "  Lizzie*    has  had  quite    a    grand 
wedding,  although  the  intention  was  that  it  should  be 


English  gentleman,  ward  and  nephew  of  Goodwin,  the  political  economist,  pupil  of 
Holcroft,  and  friend  and  relative  of  Shelley,  the  poet.  Her  moiher  was  the  daughter 
of  Major  Fairlee,  of  New  York,  an  officer  of  the  Revolutionary  war  of  Inde- 
pendence, and  of  the  Governor  Yates  and  Vanness  family.  Her  eldest  daughter, 
named  after  her  grandmother,  Lctitia  Cliristian,  was  born  in  the  White  House. 

*  Elizabeth,  third  daughter  of  Mrs.  Lelitia  Tyler,  was  married  to  Mr.  William 
Waller,  of  Williamsburg,  Virginia,  in  the  East  Room  of  the  President's  Mansion,  at 
Washington,  on  the  thirty-first  day  of  January,  1S42,  in  the  nineteenth  year  of  her  age. 
In  character  she  greatly  resembled  her  mother,  and  showed  much  of  her  early  beauty 
and  grace.  Her  oldest  son,  named  William,  resigned  from  the  West  Point  military 
school  and  married  during  the  recent  war  between  the  States  the  youngest  sister  of 
the  wife  of  President  Davis,  in  the  Executive  Mansion  of  the  Confederate  States,  at 
Richmond.  And  her  second  son,  John,  though  a  mere  lad,  was  killed  during  the 
war,  "  fighting  for  his  mother's  grave,"  to  use  his  own  words.  Another  son, 
Robert,  and  a  daughter,  Mary,  had  been  bom  to  her  before  she  died.  Her  children, 
through  their  great-grandfather,  the  first  .Secretary  of  the  American  Colonial  Con- 
gress, and  their  great-grandmother,  his  wife,  the  sister  of  the  Earl  of  Traquaire,  and 
whose  grandson  is  the  present  tilular  Earl,  bear  in  their  veins,  probably,  the  nearest 
living  Ijlood  to  that  of  Queen  Mary  Stuart,  of  Scotland,  whose  name  her  daughter 
bears. 


390  LETITIA   CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

quiet  and  private.  This,  under  the  circumstances, 
though,  was  found  impossible.  The  guests  consisted  of 
Mrs.  Madison,  the  members  of  the  cabinet,  with  their 
wives  and  daughters,  the  foreign  ministers  near  the  gov- 
ernment, and  some  few  personal  friends,  outside  of  the 
family  and  their  relatives. 

"  Lizzie  looked  surpassingly  lovely  in  her  wedding 
dress  and  long  blonde  lace-veil ;  her  face  literally  covered 
with  blushes  and  dimples.  She  behaved  remarkably 
well,  too ;  any  quantity  of  compliments  were  paid  to  her. 
I  heard  one  of  her  bridesmaids  express  to  Mr.  Webster 
her  surprise  at  Lizzie  consenting  to  give  up  her  belleship, 
with  all  the  delights  of  Washington  society,  and  the  ad- 
vantages of  her  position,  and  retire  to  a  quiet  Virginia 
home.     'Ah,'  said  he, 

'  Love  rules  the  court,  the  camp,  the  grove. 
And  love  is  heaven,  and  heaven  is  love.' 

"  Our  dear  mother  was  down-stairs  on  this  occasion 
for  the  first  time,  in  so  large  a  circle,  since  she  has  been 
in  Washington.  She  gained  by  comparison  with  all  the 
fine  ladies  around  her.  I  felt  proud  of  her,  in  her  per- 
fectly faultless,  yet  unostentatious  dress,  her  face  shaded 
by  the  soft  fine  lace  of  her  cap,  receiving  in  her  sweet, 
gentle,  self-possessed  manner,  all  the  important  people 
who  were  led  up  and  presented  to  her.  She  was  far 
more  attractive  to  me  in  her  appearance  and  bearing 
than  any  other  lady  in  the  room,  and  I  believe  such  was 
the  general  impression.     Somebody  says,  'the  highest 


DIGNITY    WITH    SIMPLICITY.  39 1 

order  of  manner  is  that  which  combines  dignity  with 
simplicity;'  and  this  just  describes  mother's  manner,  the 
charm  of  which,  after  all,  proceeds  from  her  entire  for- 
getfulness  of  self,  and  the  wish  to  make  those  around  her 

happy."  *  *  '''  '■''■  *:{:*:!: 

Major  Tyler,  who  was  for  more  than  three  years 
*'  Major  Domo  "  of  the  establishment,  and  to  the  last  pri- 
vate secretary,  says,  regarding  the  modes  and  inmates 
of  the  President's  house  durino-  this  time: 

"  My  mother's  health  was  entirely  too  delicate  to  per- 
mit her  to  charge  herself  with  the  semi-official  social  re- 
quirements of  the  mansion,  and  my  married  sisters  being 
unavoidably  absent  for  the  most  of  the  time,  the  task  de- 
volved upon  Mrs.  Robert  Tyler  to  represent  my  mother 
on  stated  occasions.  She  continued  in  the  role  of 
honors,  as  they  are  termed,  until  after  my  mother's 
death,  and  my  brother  made  his  arrangements  to  practise 
law  in  Philadelphia,  by  which  time  it  also  happened  that 
Mr.  Semple's  affairs  became  differently  accommodated, 
and  he  proceeded  to  sea  as  a  Purser  in  the  United 
States  Navy,  when  my  sister  Letitia*  became  at  liberty 
to   take  up   her  abode    in    Washington.       Accordingly, 

*  Lelitia,  the  second  and  only  surviving  daughter  and  fourth  cliild  of  Mrs.  Letilia 
Tyler,  married  in  early  life  the  nephew  and  adopted  sun  of  Judge  Semple,  of  Wil- 
liamsburg, Virginia,  who  reared  and  educated  him  to  manhood,  his  own  father, 
a  brother  of  the  Judge,  as  well  as  his  mother,  dying  in  his  infancy,  leaving  him  by 
will  a  handsome  fortune.  The  Semples  are  of  the  family  of  the  Earls  Dundonald. 
of  Scotland,  and  of  the  same  branch  with  that  of  the  celebrated  Blair,  appointed  by 
King  James  the  first  commissioner  of  Virginia,  and  who  was  afterward  President  of 
William  and  Maiy  College. 


392  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

both  the  President  and  myself  now  addressed  to  her 
letters,  inviting  her  to  assume  the  position  and  duties  of 
hostess  of  the  White  House,  which  she  consented  to  do, 
and  so  acted  until  May,  1844. 

"  During  my  mother's  life,  and  up  to  this  date,  always 
contemning  pretension  and  worldly  vanity,  we  lived  in 
the  '  White  House '  as  we  lived  at  home,  save  that  we 
were  obliged  to  have  rather  more  company,  less  select 
as  to  true  worth  than  was  altogether  agreeable.  In  the 
course  of  the  '  fashionable  season,'  and  while  the  sessions 
of  the  Congress  lasted,  we  gave  two  dinner  parties  each 
week,  very  much  after  the  plain,  substantial  "Virginia 
manner  and  style,  to  the  first  of  which,  usually  confined 
to  gentlemen  from  different  parts  of  the  country  visiting 
Washington,  and  who  had  shown  respectful  attention  to 
the  President  and  family,  twenty  guests  were  always  in- 
vited ;  and  to  the  second,  usually  embracing  both  ladies 

and  p-entlemen  from  amontr  the  dis:;nitaries  of  the  differ- 
fc>  00 

ent  departments  of  the  Federal  and  State  governments, 
and  the  diplomatic  corps  of  foreign  governments,  forty 
persons  were  invited,  making  in  either  case  quite  a  full 
table. 

"  Our  drawing-rooms,  as  at  home,  were  open  every 
evening  informally  until  10  o'clock — never  later — when 
the  family  rose  and  retired,  and  doors  were  closed.  Be- 
fore my  mother's  death,  we  gave  occasionally  during 
the  winter  months,  by  special  invitations,  in  the  general 
reception-rooms,  a  private  ball,  attended  with  dancing, 
but  terminatino-   at    1 1    o'clock.      In   addition   to   these 


SOCIAL    ENTERTAINMENTS.  393 

private  entertainments  and  strictly  social  converse,  we 
introduced  at  this  period — for  the  first  time  it  had  been 
done — music  on  the  grounds  of  the  south  front  of  the 
Mansion,  on  the  Saturday  evenings  of  each  week  during 
the  mild  weather  of  the  spring,  summer,  and  fall,  for  the 
recreation  of  the  public  at  large  ;  and  to  a  similar  end  a 
public  levee  was  held  once  a  month,  in  addition  to  the 
general  receptions  on  the  first  day  of  January  and  the 
Fourth  of  July,  of  each  year. 

"  Nothing  whatever  preceded  b)'  cards  of  invitation 
was  permitted  to  be  considered  in  any  other  light  than 
as  a  private  affair  of  the  Presidential  family,  with  which 
the  world  outside  and  the  public  press  had  nothing- 
whatever  to  do,  just  precisely  as  if  we  had  been  in  our 
own  house  in  Williamsburg.  Even  in  respect  to  the 
public  receptions  mentioned,  the  Madisoniaii  was  never 
suffered  to  indulge  in  a  description  either  of  the  persons 
or  characters  present,  in  an  individualizing  manner,  after 
modern  usages,  and  no  encouragement  was  given  to 
any  one  so  to  do.  I  send  you  a  specimen  of  the  only 
sort  of  notice,  even  in  the  latter  case,  that  was  regarded 
as  at  all  admissible  while  my  mother  lived.  Anything 
more  particular  would  have  shocked  her  delicate  sense 
of  propriety,  and  been  absolutely  offensive  to  the  Presi- 
dent. 

'■'From  the  MaJisonian,  M'ashingtni,  Monday,  March  lyh,  1842. 

"The  Last  Levee  of  the  Season. 
"  The  levee  held  by  the  President  on  Tuesday  evening 
last  was  a  brilliant  affair,  and  gave  satisfactory  evidence 


394  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

of  the  esteem  In  which  that  high  functionary  Is  held  In 
social  circles. 

"Among  the  visitors  of  peculiar  note  were  the  distin- 
guished authors  of  the  '  Sketch-Book,'  and  of  the  '  Plck- 
w^Ick  Papers,'  In  addition  to  whom  almost  all  the  Ministers 
of  Foreign  Powers  to  our  Government  were  In  attendance 
In  full  court  dress. 

"The  rooms  were  filled  to  overflowing  with  the  talent 
and  beauty  of  the  metropolis,  whilst  Senators  and  Mem- 
bers of  Congress,  without  distinction  of  party,  served  to 
give  interest  and  to  add  animation  to  the  scene.  It 
seems  to  us  that  these  levees,  as  at  present  conducted, 
are  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  genius  of  our  Republican 
institutions,  Inasmuch  as  all  who  please  may  attend 
without  Infringement  of  etiquette.  We  almost  regret 
their  termination  for  the  season,  but  look  forward  with 
pleasure  to  the  period  when  they  will  be  renewed." 

"  I  may  say  that  this  notice,  as  restrained  as  It  Is,  bears 
internal  evidence  showing  that  It  would  not  have  been 
made  but  for  the  necessity  of  informing  the  public  in 
some  indirect  manner  of  the  termination  of  the  public 
receptions  for  a  season.  I  find  none  other.  In  another 
column,  and  in  quite  a  different  connection,  the  Madi- 
sonian  says :  '  The  Richmond  WJiig  admits,  and  we 
heartily  concur  in  the  sentiment,  that  Mr.  Tyler,  in  his 
appointment  of  Washington  Irving,  the  author  of  the 
'  Sketch-Book,'  as  minister  to  Spain,  has  paid  a  just 
tribute  to  the  most  distineulshed  ornament  of  American 
letters.     Scarcely  any  notice  appears  of  the  marriage  of 


DEATH    OF    MRS.    TYLER.  395 

my  sister  Elizabeth  in  the  preceding  January,  that  being 
regarded  as  a  purely  family  matter." 

No  perceptible  change  in  Mrs.  Tyler's  condition  of 
health  occurred  until  Friday,  the  9th  day  of  September, 
1842.  On  the  morning  of  that  day,  her  family  physician 
detected  a  change  unhappily  for  the  worse,  and  a  threat- 
ened renewal  of  paralysis.  He  instantly  called  in  con- 
sultation others  of  the  faculty,  and  everything  devised 
by  the  skill  of  the  profession  to  ward  off  the  fatal 
stroke  was  promptly  applied.  But  all  in  vain.  On  the 
evening  of  the  next  day,  Saturday,  September  the  loth, 
at  eight  o'clock,  the  hour  came  for  her  to  be  joined  to 
her  fathers.  A  pious  communicant  of  the  Church  of 
Christ,  innocent  in  soul  as  a  little  child,  crowned  with 
the  virtues  which  had  marked  her  useful  and  unselfish 
life,  fearing  and  loving  God,  reverencing  her  husband, 
adoring  and  adored  by  her  children — she  passed  into 
the  heavenly  kingdom  palpitating  with  the  immortal 
joys  of  a  spirit  released  from  every  earthly  pain  and 
sorrow.  On  Sunday,  the  Executive  Mansion  stood 
arrayed  in  mourning,  and  the  tolling  of  the  bells  of  the 
city  announced  the  sad  visitation  to  those  among  the 
living.  Every  honor  that  the  sincerest  respect  and  the 
purest  love  and  the  sense  of  a  bitter  bereavement  could 
suggest,  was  paid  to  her  remains.  A  committee  of  the 
citizens  of  Washington  conveyed  her  body,  after  it  had 
laid  in  state  in  the  East  Room  for  several  days,  to  the 
family  burial-ground  at  the  old  paternal  residence  in 
New  Kent  county,  and  there,  in  the  midst  of  a  sorrowing 


39^  LETITIA    CHRISTIAN    TYLER. 

assemblasi'e  of  relatives  and  friends  and  neigfhbors  who 
had  known  her  from  birth,  the  parting  tears  of  her  hus- 
band and  her  children,  gushing  up  from  the  fountain  of 
their  hearts,  were  shed  upon  her  coffin  ere  it  was  de- 
posited in  the  earth,  where  reposed  already  the  dust  of 
her  parents  and  of  others  she  had  loved,  and  who  fondly 
loved  her. 

Thus  lived  and  died  Mrs.  Letitia  Tyler,  wife  of  the 
last  of  the  Virginia  Presidents  of  the  United  States,  a 
model  of  the  exalted  civilization  of  the  "  ancient  com- 
monwealth and  dominion,"  a  representative  of  her  sex 
worthy  of  their  grateful  memory,  and  an  honor  to  the 
human  family. 


XIV. 

JULIA   GARDINER   TYLER. 

President  John  Tyler  was  married  to  Miss  Julia 
Gardiner  the  26th  day  of  June,  1844,  at  the  Church  of 
the  Ascension,  New  York  city.  Immediately  after  the 
wedding,  the  bridal  party  returned  to  the  White  House, 
where  they  held  a  grand  reception  in  lieu  of  the  usual 
wedding  festivities.  It  was  the  first,  and  up  to  the  pres- 
ent time,  the  only  instance  of  the  marriage  of  a  Presi- 
dent, and  the  affair  created  great  excitement  and 
interest  throughout  the  United  States,  heisfhtened  doubt- 
less  by  the  recollection  of  the  tragic  death  of  the  father 
of  the  bride,  a  few  months  previous. 

Miss  Gardiner  was  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  gentle- 
man residing  on  Gardiner's  Island,  and  the  eldest  of 
three  children.  Her  education,  continued  at  home  until 
her  sixteenth  year,  was  completed  at  the  Chegary  Insti- 
tute, in  New  York  city.  Immediately  after  the  termina- 
tion of  her  school  life,  she  accompanied  her  father  to 
Europe.  Returning  from  abroad  after  an  extended 
tour,  she  visited,  during  the  sitting  of  Congress,  the 
National  Capital,  and  there  for  the  first  time  met 
the  distinfjuished  man  to  whom  she  was  afterward 
married. 

It  was  while  on  a  visit  to  Washington  in  the  winter  of 

1844,  that  Mr.  Gardiner  and  his  young  daughter  were 

(397) 


398  •  '  JULIA    GARDINER    TYLER. 

invited  by  Captain  Stockton  to  accompany  a  large  party 
of  tlie  President's  friends  to  Alexandria,  and  on  the  return 
trip,  when  just  opposite  to  the  fort,  all  the  gentlemen  were 
invited  on  deck  to  witness  the  firing  of  the  "  peace- 
maker," Many  of  the  party,  who  were  all  partaking  of  a 
collation,  responded  to  the  invitation  ;  among  the  number 
the  father  of  Miss  Gardiner.  The  explosion  startled  the 
President,  who  with  the  ladies  had  remained  below,  and 
in  a  moment  the  piercing  cries  of  the  wounded  filled 
the  hearts  of  the  passengers  with  terror.  Death  had 
made  fearful  havoc,  and  the  living  waited  in  breathless 
anxiety  for  the  announcement  of  the  names  of  the 
victims. 

The  bodies  were  conveyed  to  the  White  House,  where 
the  funeral  services  were  preached,  and  the  last  sad  rites 
performed. 

The  following  summer  Miss  Gardiner  was  married, 
and  from  that  time  until  the  close  of  her  husband's 
administration,  a  period  of  eight  months,  she  did  the 
honors  of  the  Executive  Mansion,  performing  her 
agreeable  task  with  credit  to  herself  and  pleasure  to  her 
friends. 

After  President  Tyler's  retirement  from  public  life,  he 
removed  to  his  home  in  Virginia,  where  he  continued  to 
reside  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  Richmond,  the 
17th  of  January,  1862. 

Of  late  years  Mrs.  Tyler  has  suflTered  p.ecuniary  losses, 
and  in  the  winter  of  1879  she  petitioned  and  received 
from  Congress  a  pension.     She  has  resided  for  the  past 


A    DEVOTED    CATHOLIC.  399 

few  years  in  Washington  City,  and  at  present  (1881)  is 
living  in  Georgetown.  A  devoted  Catholic,  she  finds  it 
pleasant  to  be  a  resident  of  that  retired  and  peaceful 
place,  near  to  Washington,  and  yet  not  in  it. 


i 


XV. 

SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

Sarah  Childress,  the  daughter  of  Captain  Joel  and 
Elizabeth  Childress,  was  born  near  Murfreesboro,  in 
Rutherford  county,  Tennessee,  the  4th  day  of  Septem- 
ber, 1S03.  In  that  beautiful  portion  of  the  South,  almost 
a  wilderness  then,  passed  the  younger  years  of  her  life, 
and  there  is  little  to  record  of  it  save  its  contentment  and 
tranquil  happiness.  Her  father,  a  farmer  in  easy  circum- 
stances, and  considered  rich  for  those  days,  allowed  his 
children  every  benefit  to  be  derived  from  his  fortunate 
circumstances,  and  she  was  early  placed  at  school.  The 
Moravian  Institute  at  Salem,  North  Carolina,  was  chosen 
by  Mr.  Childress  as  the  most  suitable  place  for  his  little 
daughter,  and  she  was  placed  in  that  strict  and  most 
thorough  establishment.  There  she  attained  discipline 
and  culture,  and  her  school  days  with  their  varying 
shadows  and  sunshine  passed  quietly  away.  There  was 
nothing  to  mar  the  influence  of  those  happy  school  days, 
and  each  as  It  came,  did  its  appointed  duty  in  moulding 
her  character.  The  April  life  fleeted  by,  clouds  and  sun- 
shine, little  griefs  and  joys,  the  studious  hour,  the  frank 
companionship  of  girlhood,  the  animating  walk,  hand  in 
hand  wuth  young  friends  and  with  nature;  soon  rolled 
away,  and  Sarah  Childress  returned  home.     Surrounded 

in  her  father's  house  by  all  the  comforts  possible  to  ob- 
(400) 


MmScomifflSS  JKoIPODILIKc 


HER    MARRIAGE.  4OI 

tain  in  that  State  in  those  days,  and  possessing  a  hopeful 
temperament  and  sunny  heart,  adorned  with  all  the  ac- 
complishments that  the  attention  of  parents  and  teachers 
could  bestow,  she  was  a  bright  ornament  in  her  home, 
and  a  pleasure  to  her  friends  and  society. 

At  the  early  age  of  nineteen  she  was  married  to 
James  Knox  Polk,  in  Murfreesboro.  The  wedding  was 
a  festival  of  rejoicing,  at  which  many  friends  of  the 
bride  and  groom  assisted,  and  was  characterized  by  the 
abundance  and  merriment  customary  at  that  day. 

Mr.  Polk  had  recently  entered  public  life,  and  was  then 
a  member  of  the  Legislature  of  Tennessee.  In  the  fol- 
lowing year  he  was  elected  to  Congress  from  the  district, 
at  that  time  composed  of  the  counties  of  Giles,  Maury, 
Lincoln,  and  Bedford.  During  fourteen  sessions  h<; 
continued  the  representative  of  that  district.  After 
having  served  on  the  most  important  committees  in  thfi 
House,  he  was,  in  1836,  elected  Speaker  of  the  Houses 
of  Representatives,  a  position  for  which  his  studious  and 
industrious  habits,  together  with  his  constantly  increasing 
popularity,  peculiarly  fitted  him. 

Mrs.  Polk  did  not  fail  to  accompany  her  husband  to 

Washington  every  winter  except   in  a  single  instance. 

She  occupied  there  a  conspicuous  place  in  society,  and 

by  her  polite  manners  and  sound  judgment  made  her 

companionship  pleasant  and  inspiriting,  not  only  to  Mr. 

Polk,  but  to   the   friends  by  whom  he  was  surrounded. 

Mrs.  Polk  was  a  highly  cultivated  without  being  a  literary 

woman.     Being  interested  in  all  that  related  to  her  hus- 
26 


402  •  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

band,  she  took  pains  to  inform  herself  fully  in  political 
affairs,  and  read  all  the  news  and  discussions  of  the  day 
relating  to  the  well-being  of  the  country,  subjects  which 
to  most  ladies  of  that  day  proved  wearisome  and  hard 
to  understand.  Living  in  the  atmosphere  of  politicians 
and  surrounded  by  public  men,  she  however  avoided  the 
maelstrom  upon  which  ladies  are  often  stranded,  and 
never  discussed  a  subject  in  relation  to  which  her  sex 
were  expected  to  be  entirely  ignorant.  Women  were 
then  as  now,  supposed  to  be  too  weak  to  understand  the 
mighty  problem  of  Government,  and  they  evidenced 
their  acquiescence  in  such  a  supposition  by  remaining 
entirely  unacquainted  with  the  politics  of  the  country. 
Not  so  Mrs.  Polk,  who  however  was  no  politician,  for 
her  visitors  were  not  aware  of  the  depth  of  her  under- 
standing, nor  were  they  offended  by  the  recurrence  to  a 
subject  deemed  out  of  her  sphere.  There  was  an  in- 
tuitive feeling  in  her  heart  of  what  was  due  to  her  deli- 
cacy, and  she  was  wise  enough  to  be  consistent  and 
appropriate  in  all  her  actions.  Yet  her  mind  was 
strengthened  by  careful  reading  and  intimate  intercourse 
with  many  of  the  finest  minds  in  the  country. 

Mr.  Polk's  residence  was  at  Columbia,  Tennessee, 
where  the  intervals  between  the  sessions  of  Conofress 
were  spent  among  his  relatives.  In  the  year  1834,  Mrs. 
Polk  joined  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  that  place. 
Since  that  time  her  character  has  been  entirely  a  Chris- 
tian one.  Faithful  and  devout,  consistent  in  her  conduct 
to  every  rule  and  requirement  of  her  sect,  she  has  ex- 


MR.    POLK    GOVERNOR   OF   TENNESSEE.  4O3 

empllfied  in  her  life  the  punctual  observance  of  a  vow 
to  serve  her  God  throusfh  the  acknowledo^ed  tenets  of 
the  Presbyterian  faith. 

On  the  departure  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Polk  from  Wash- 
ington, in  1839,  Mrs.  Polk  received  the  graceful  compli- 
ment of  a  copy  of  verses  addressed  to  her  by  the  emi- 
nent jurist,  Hon.  Joseph  D.  Story. 

In  the  same  year  Mr.  Polk  was  made  the  Governor 
of  Tennessee,  and  removed  his  residence  to  Nashville, 
in  order  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  his  new  position.  Mrs. 
Polk,  always  amiable  and  animated  by  the  truest  fidelity 
to  her  husband's  interests,  exerted  a  wide  influence  in 
the  new  circle  into  which  her  life  had  been  cast.  By  the 
winning  gentleness  which  ever  accompanied  her  fine 
social  qualities,  she  attracted  even  those  members  of  the 
Legislature  who  were  among  the  opponents  of  Mr.  Polk. 
And  this  is  saying  a  great  deal  when  it  is  remembered 
that  the  political  campaign  of  1840  was  the  most  fierce 
and  exciting  one  in  the  history  of  the  country.  It  is 
known  as  the  "  hard  cider  and  log-cabin  campaign." 
Political  rancor  and  animosity  prevailed  to  an  unprece- 
dented degree.  But  the  lady-like  affability,  and  high 
and  exalted  virtues  of  Mrs.  Polk,  won  universal  admira- 
tion from  friend  and  foe  alike.  She  lived  above  the 
warring  elements  that  surrounded  her.  The  calm  and 
charming  bearing  of  the  Governor's  wife  was  a  source 
of  constant  praise. 

From  the  sister  States  of  Tennessee  and  Kentucky 
came    the    opposing    Presidential    candidates    in    1844. 


404  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

Henry  Clay,  the  idol  of  the  Whig  party^  and  the  most 
popular  public  man  in  the  Commonwealth,  against  the 
champion  of  Democracy,  James  K.  Polk. 

The  election  was  keenly  contested,  and  the  result 
most  damaging  to  the  Whig  party.  March  4,  1845,  Mr. 
Polk  was  inaugurated.  The  day  was  very  disagreeable, 
rain  and  mud  rendering  much  of  a  display  out  of  the 
question.  He  was  accompanied  from  the  Capitol  to  the 
W^hite  House  by  the  retiring  President,  who  there  took 
a  kindly  leave,  wishing  him  prosperity  and  happiness  in 
his  new  and  exalted  position.  Mrs.  Polk  immediately 
assumed  the  agreeable  duties  of  the  lady  of  the  White 
House,  and  having  no  children  to  occupy  her  time,  she 
devoted  herself  entirely  to  the  pleasures  of  her  new 
station.  She  held  weekly  receptions,  and  it  was  custo- 
mary for  her  to  receive  her  company  sitting.  The  ex- 
treme formality  required  now  was  not  practised  then. 
The  crowds  that  attend  the  few  levees  held  by  the  Pres- 
ident's family  render  everything  like  sociability  out  of 
the  question.  Farther  and  farther  from  the  old  land- 
marks .we  are  drifting.  In  Mrs.  Washington's  day  the 
company  were  seated,  and  herself  and  the  President 
passed  among  the  company.  Later  in  the  history^  of  the 
Chief  Magistrates,  President  Adams  dispensed  cake  and 
wine  to  the  guests,  and  General  Jackson  cheese.  As  the 
t  throng  grew  more  numerous,  Mrs.  Polk  did  away  with 
refreshments,  and  now  policemen  are  stationed  in  the 
Mansion  during  receptions  to  keep  the  crowds  from 
crushing  the  President  and  family,  who  are  compelled 


IN    THE    PRESIDENTIAL    MANSION.  4O5 

to  Stand  and  shake  hands  the  entire  evenlnor.  Verily 
we  are  a  progressive  people. 

The  reputation  which  Mrs.  Polk  had  acquired  was 
nobly  sustained,  even  when  subjected,  as  one  might  say, 
to  the  gaze  of  the  whole  world.  Every  circumstance, 
whether  of  embarrassment,  perplexity  or  trial,  added  to 
the  undiminished  lustre  of  her  name.  She  maintained 
the  dignity  of  the  President's  Mansion,  which,  in  this 
country  of  republican  freedom  and  simplicity,  was  often 
in  danger  of  being  lowered.  Her  parents  were  of  the 
old  school,  high-toned  in  manners  and  principles,  and  she 
had  imbibed  from  them  what  may  be  called  the  aristoc- 
racy of  virtue ;  an  idea  that,  whatever  the  mass  of  society 
might  consider  themselves  at  Hberty  to  do,  it  was  indis- 
pensably due  to  her  station  to  preserve  inviolate  the 
strict  laws  of  decorum  and  of  the  purest  principles. 
Hence  it  will  not  be  surprising  that  during  her  occupancy 
of  the  White  House  the  practice  which  had  formerly  ob- 
tained, of  dancing  there,  was  discontinued ;  a  practice 
which  was  evidently  out  of  all  harmony  with  the  place, 
and  more  suitable  anywhere  else. 

The  return  of  Mrs.  Polk  to  Washinofton  was  antici- 
pated  by  her  friends  with  the  liveliest  gratification.  She 
was  considered,  by  those  who  knew  her,  remarkably 
fitted  to  fill  and  adorn  the  high  seat  to  which  she  was 
bidden.  The  following-  extracts  will  show  the  feelinor 
which  was  rife.     The  Tennessee  Democrat  said : 

"  We  have  recently  noticed  in  our  exchange  papers, 
of  both  political  parties,  the  most  respectful  and  flatter- 


406  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

ing  compliments  paid  to  the  amiable  and  accomplished 
lady  who  is  shortly  to  take  charge  of  the  White  House. 
We  cannot  refrain  from  copying  the  following  compli- 
mentary tribute  to  Mrs.  Polk,  which  is  taken  from  the 
Southern  (Miss.)  Reformer,  and  we  are  sure  that  in  this 
community,  where  Mrs.  Polk  is  best  known,  the  compli- 
ment will  be  duly  appreciated." — 

"■ '  This  lady  is  one  of  the  most  sensible,  refined  and 
accomplished  of  her  sex,  and  will  adorn  the  White  House 
at  Washington,  over  which  she  is  destined  to  preside, 
with  distinguished  honor  to  her  country.  All  who  have 
mingled  in  her  society  know  well  how  to  appreciate  the 
gracefulness  of  her  disposition.  We  have  seen  few 
women  that  have  developed  more  of  the  genuine  repub- 
lican characteristics  of  the  American  lady.  She  has  had 
her  admirers  not  only  in  the  highest,  but  in  the  humblest 
walks  of  life.  The  poor  know  her  for  her  benevolence ; 
the  rich  for  the  plainness  of  her  equipage ;  the  church 
for  her  consistency ;  the  unfortunate  for  her  charities ; 
and  society  itself  for  the  veneration  and  respect  which 
her  virtues  have  everywhere  awarded  her.  We  feel 
proud  that  the  southwest  can  boast  of  such  a  noble  off- 
spring.' " 

"  Washington  City,  February  24,  1845. 

"  My  Dear  Sir: — The  advent  of  our  President-elect 
has  concentrated  everything  to  and  about  him.  The 
prudence  that  he  observed  before  he  reached  here  in 
reference  to  the  formation  of  his  Cabinet  still  exists.  He 
keeps  his  own  counsels,  and  no  tie  of  personal  or  politi- 


NEWSPAPER    MENTION    OF    HER.  407 

cal  friendship,  as  far  as  we  can  learn,  has  been  enabled 
to  get  iVom  him  a  glimpse  of  the  future.  It  is  generally 
believed  here  that  Mr.  Polk  will  be  influenced  by  no 
ultra  party  considerations ;  that  he  will  look  to  the  great 
interests  of  the  country  as  a  whole,  and  study,  with  the 
incentives  of  a  statesman  and  a  patriot,  so  to  administer 
the  government.  Should  he  prescribe  to  himself  this 
policy,  those  who  know  him  best  know  that  he  has  firm- 
ness of  purpose  commensurate  to  its  fulfilment. 

"  Whatever  the  diversities  of  opinion  that  divide  poli- 
ticians, and  whatever  the  asperities  of  feeling  engendered 
by  the  conflicts  to  which  they  lead,  they  seem,  by  common 
consent,  to  be  surrendered  upon  the  altar  that  is  reared 
in  every  chivalrous  heart,  to  the  meed  most  justly  due  to 
elegance  and  excellence  of  female  character,  in  the  per- 
son of  the  lady  of  the  President-elect. 

"All  approach  her  with  the  tribute  that  is  due  to  her 
exalted  station,  and  all  leave  her  with  the  pleasing  im- 
pression that  the  refinement  and  blandishments  of  her 
manners,  the  gentleness  of  her  disposition,  and  unosten- 
tatious bearing,  fit  her  eminently  for  the  place  and  part 
she  is  to  occupy  for  the  next  four  years.  At  home  and 
abroad,  the  influence  of  her  character  will  do  honor  to 
our  country.     These  are  the  impressions  of  your  friend." 

"  Not  long  since,  in  the  Nashville  Union,  appeared  a 
communication  in  which  the  writer  very  justly  applauds 
the  lady  of  the  President  of  the  United  States  in  con- 
sequence of  her  dignified  and  exemplary  deportment 
since  her  occupancy  of  the  Presidential  Mansion.    /^  mong 


40S  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

Other  remarks,  the  following  occur:  'She  Is  a  consistent 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  therefore  has 
abolished  dancing  and  other  light  amusements  in  her 
house.'  Assuredly  nothing  more  effectually  commends 
the  religion  of  the  Bible  than  the  holy  and  consistent 
conduct  of  those  who  profess  to  be  governed  by  its 
precepts. 

"A  professor  of  religion,  doubtless  Mrs.  Polk  deeply 
realized  the  responsibility  of  her  position.  Exposed  to 
the  temptations  of  fashionable  life  in  their  most  alluring 
forms,  it  required  no  trivial  amount  of  gracious  influence 
to  enable  her  to  abjure  the  maxims  and  customs  of  an 
untrodly  world.  The  friends  of  religion  anxiously  looked 
forward  in  regard  to  the  course  she  might  think  proper 
to  adopt  in  that  respect,  and  thanks  to  Providence  and 
her  own  pious  heart,  their  hopes  and  expectations  have 
not  been  disappointed.  By  her  consistent  and  exem- 
plar}^ conduct  she  has  secured  the  gratitude  and  respect 
of  the  friends  of  religion  of  every  name,  yea,  of  all 
whose  good  opinion  is  most  worth  enjoying ;  while,  in 
the  meantime,  the  friends  and  advocates  of  the  rejected 
pastimes,  nolens  voleiis,  will  even  on  that  account  feel  con- 
strained to  accord  to  her  the  homao-e  of  their  augmented 
respect. 

"  The  example  of  Mrs.  Polk  can  hardly  fail  of  exerting, 
in  various  respects,  a  salutary  influence.  Especially  does 
it  rebuke  the  conduct  of  those  ladies  who,  professing 
godliness,  nevertheless  dishonor  its  profession  by  their 
eager  participation  in  the  follies  and  amusements  of  the 


HER    REGAL    PRESENXE.  4O9 

world.  However  politicians  may  differ  in  regard  to  the 
merits  of  Mr.  Polk's  administration,  there  can  be  no  dif- 
ference as  respects  that  of  his  lady,  in  her  department  of 
•the  Presidential  Mansion.  All  will  agree  that  by  the  ex- 
clusion of  the  frivolities  spoken  of,  and  her  excellent  de- 
portment in  other  respects,  she  has  conferred  additional 
dignity  upon  the  executive  department  of  our  govern- 
ment, and  may  well  be  considered  a  model  worthy  of 
imitation  by  the  ladies  who  may  hereafter  occupy  the 
elevated  position  from  which  she  is  about  to  retire.  This 
excellent  lady,  ere  long,  it  is  presumed,  will  return  to  the 
society  of  kindred  and  friends,  among  whom,  it  is  sin- 
cerely hoped,  she  may  long  live  to  receive  and  confer 
happiness  upon  all  around,  and  as  hitherto,  continue  to 
be  an  ornament  to  the  religion  and  church  her  example 
has  so  signally  honored." 

In  her  elevated  and  conspicuous  situation,  the  statell- 
ness  of  Mrs.  Polk's  bearing  was  strikingly  becoming  and 
appropriate.  With  this  an  English  lady  was  impressed, 
who  averred  that  not  one  of  the  three  queens  whom  she 
had  seen  could  compare  with  the  truly  feminine  yet  dis- 
tinguished and  regal  presence  of  Mrs.  Polk.  She  says : 
"  Mrs.  Polk  Is  a  very  handsome  woman.  Her  hair  is 
very  black,  and  her  dark  eye  and  complexion  remind  one 
of  the  Spanish  donnas.  She  is  well  read,  has  much  talent 
for  conversation,  and  is  highly  popular.  Her  excellent 
taste  in  dress  preserves  the  subdued  though  elegant 
costume  which  characterizes  the  lady." 

The  same  feeling  of  admiration  seemed  to  Inspire  the 


41 0  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

graceful  writer,  Mrs.  Ann  S.  Stephens,  in  the  following 
tribute : 

"  Lady,  had  I  the  wealth  of  earth 

To  offer  freely  at  thy  shrine, 
Bright  gold  and  buds  of  dewy  birth, 

Or  gems  from  out  the  teeming  mine, 
A.  thousand  things  most  beautiful. 

All  sparkling,  precious,  rich  and  rare, 
These  hands  would  render  up  to  thee, 

Thou  noble  lady,  good  and  fair ! 

"  For  as  I  write,  sweet  thoughts  arise 

Of  times  when  all  thy  kindness  lent 
A  thousand  hues  of  Paradise 

To  the  fleet  moments  as  they  went ; 
Then  all  thy  thoughts  were  winged  with  light. 

And  every  smile  was  calm  and  sweet. 
And  thy  low  tones  and  gentle  words 

Made  the  warm  heart's  blood  thrill  and  beat._ 

"  There,  standing  in  our  nation's  home. 

My  memory  ever  pictures  thee 
As  some  bright  dame  of  ancient  Rome, 

Modest,  yet  all  a  queen  should  be ; 
I  love  to  keep  thee  in  my  mind. 

Thus  mated  with  the  pure  of  old, 
When  love,  with  lofty  deeds  combined. 

Made  women  great  and  warriors  bold. 

*<  When  first  I  saw  thee  standing  there. 

And  felt  the  pressure  of  thy  hand, 
I  scarcely  thought  if  thou  wert  fair. 

Or  of  the  highest  in  the  land ; 
I  knew  thee  gentle,  pure  as  great, 

All  that  was  lovely,  meek  and  good; 
And  so  I  half  forgot  thy  state 

In  love  of  thy  bright  wipmanhood. 


A    PRESIDENTIAL    RECEPTION.  4I  I 

"And  many  a  sweet  sensation  came, 

That  lingers  in  my  bosom  yet, 
Like  that  celestial,  holy  flame 

That  vestals  tremble  to  forget. 
And  on  the  earth  or  in  the  sky, 

There's  not  a  thought  more  true  and  free, 
Than  that  which  beats  within  my  heart. 

In  pleasant  memory  of  thee, 

"Lady,  I  gladly  would  have  brought 

Some  gem  that  on  thy  heart  may  live. 
But  this  poor  wreath  of  woven  thought 

Is  all  the  wealth  I  have  to  give. 
All  wet  with  heart-dew,  flush  with  love, 

I  lay  the  garland  at  thy  feet. 
Praying  the  angel-forms  above. 

To  weave  thee  one  more  pure  and  sweet." 

The  receptions  of  the  President  were  always  largely 
attended,  and  were  made  agreeable  to  everybody  by  the 
spirit  of  liveliness  as  well  as  of  courtesy  that  prevailed. 
A  visitor  says :  "  Last  evening  I  had  an  opportunity  of 
seeing  the  members  of  the  royal  family,  together  with 
some  choice  specimens  of  the  Democracy,  in  the  *  circle- 
room  '  of  the  White  House.  It  was  reception  night,  and 
the  latch-string,  in  the  shape  of  a  handsome  negro,  was 
'outside  the  door.'  On  entering,  I  found  the  room  full. 
Mr.  Polk  is  so  affable  as  to  prevent  one  from  feeling 
any  awe  that  he  is  in  direct  communication  with  the  con- 
centrated majesty  of  the  whole  United  States  and  Terri- 
tories. 

"  The  wife  of  the  President  was  seated  on  the  sofa, 
engaged  with  half  a  dozen  ladies  in  lively  conversation. 


412  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

Ill  and  clumsy  as  I  am  at  millinery,  yet  for  the  sake  of 
my  fair  readers,  I  will  try  to  describe  her  toilet.  A 
maroon  colored  velvet  dress,  with  short  sleeves  and  high 
in  the  neck,  trimmed  with  very  deep  lace,  and  a  hand- 
some pink  head-dress  was  all  that  struck  the  eye  of  the 
general  observer.  Mr.  Willis  would,  no  doubt,  have  no- 
ticed many  other  little  accompaniments,  interesting  to 
ladies,  but  I  never  could  indulge  in  any  such  familiarity. 
Who  would  think  of  plucking  at  an  angel's  wing  in  order 
to  give  an  analysis  of  its  fibre  ?  Mrs.  Polk  is  a  handsome, 
intelligent  and  sensible  woman,  better  looking  and  better 
dressed  than  any  of  her  numerous  lady  visitors  present 
on  the  occasion. 

"Amone  the  quests  of  distinction  were  the  Hon.  Cave 
Johnson,  Postmaster-General,  who  bears  a  strong  re- 
semblance about  the  head  to  Mr.  Greeley,  of  the  Tribune; 
Mr.  Vinton,  of  Ohio,  Commodore  De  Kay,  Mr.  Rockwell, 
of  Connecticut,  and  a  Wall  Street  financier,  who  can  draw 
a  laro-er  draft  on  London  than  any  other  man  in  the 
country.  There  were  two  or  three  pairs  of  epaulettes  ; 
a  couple  of  pretty  deaf  and  dumb  girls,  who  only  talked 
with  their  fingers ;  and  scores  of  others  who  talked  with 
their  eyes,  while  a  whole  regiment  of  the  '  raw  material ' 
of  the  Democracy  in  frock  coats,  stood  as  straight  as 
grenadiers  around  the  outer  circle  of  the  room,  gazing 
in  silent  astonishment  at  the  President  and  the  chan- 
delierr-." 

On  one  of  the  reception  nights  a  distinguished  gentle- 
man  from   South  Carolina  remarked  in  a  loud  tone  of 


THE    WAR    WITH    MEXICO.  4I 3 

voice  to  Mrs.  Polk,  "  Madam,  there  is  a  woe  pronounced 
against  you  in  the  Bible."  Every  one  ceased  conversing 
for  a  moment,  when  Mrs.  Polk  inquired  what  he  meant. 
"Well,  the  Bible  says,  'Woe  unto  you  when  all  men 
shall  speak  well  of  you.'  "  A  general  laugh  followed, 
and  the  remark  was  considered  very  appropriate. 

During  President  Polk's  administration,  the  war  with 
Mexico  was  inaugurated  by  a  difficulty  about  the  bound- 
ary line  of  Texas.  The  country  is  acquainted  with  the 
brilliant  successes  of  the  American  troops  in  Mexico, 
and  of  General  Scott's  glorious  successes,  whereby  he 
reached  and  revelled  in  the  halls  of  the  Montezumas. 
The  war  ended  in  1848,  the  year  before  Mr.  Polk's  re- 
tirement. President  Polk's  easy,  courteous  manners, 
went  far  toward  allaying  the  opposition  which  is  ever  ap- 
parent in  times  of  national  trouble,  and  the  affable  man- 
ners of  Mrs.  Polk  rendered  his  efforts  the  more  success- 
ful. With  the  exception  of  the  summer  of  1847,  spent 
in  Tennessee,  Mrs.  Polk  remained  uninterruptedly  at 
the  White  House ;  the  visits  of  members  of  her  family 
cheering  the  otherwise  monotonous  routine  of  her  life 
there. 

A  eentleman  who  called  at  the  White  House  one  even- 
ino-  in  the  fall  of  1846,  writes  in  the  following  terms  of 
his  visit:  "We  were  met  by  Mr.  Walker,  the  Private 
Secretary,  with  much  politeness,  the  President  being  ab- 
sent, and  were  received  by  Mrs.  Polk  in  the  kindest,  and 
at  the  same  time  most  graceful,  manner.  It  may  be  said 
with  truth,  she  is  a  lady  of  commanding  dignity  at  all 


414  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

times ;  and  her  conversation,  generally  of  the  most 
agreeable  character,  is  always  happily  directed.  In  my 
judgment,  at  no  period  in  our  history  have  we  seen  the 
hospitalities  and  ceremonies  of  the  White  House  more 
handsomely  dispensed,  or  displayed  with  greater  repub- 
lican simplicity  than  at  the  present  time.  If  my  obser- 
vation be  correct,  no  invidious  or  improper  distinction 
seems  to  be  made  in  the  circle  of  visitors.  There  is  no 
imposing  movement  or  extra  formality  exhibited  when  a 
Secretary  or  some  other  high  officer  of  Government  pre- 
sents himself.  The  quiet  and  unheralded  citizen  receives 
a  polite  and  cordial  salutation,  as  well  as  the  haughty  mil- 
lionnaire,  or  some  proud  minister  of  state.  And  this  is 
precisely  as  it  should  be,  a  just  and  beautiful  com- 
mentary, alike  upon  our  noble  institutions,  and  the 
charming  social  qualities  of  the  President  and  his  family. 
"  I  was  struck  not  only  with  the  easy  and  fascinating 
manners  of  Mrs.  Polk,  but  equally  with  her  patriotic 
sentiments  and  feelings.  A  gallant  Lieutenant  just 
from  the  bloody  but  glorious  conflict  at  Monterey,  was 
there  also  ;  and  as  Mrs.  Polk  gracefully  carried  back  his 
thoughts  to  the  distant  field  of  his  early  fame,  he  caught 
the  inspiration  at  once,  and  dwelt  briefly  for  her  enter- 
tainment upon  some  of  the  thrilling  incidents  of  those 
scenes.  In  the  course  of  this  animated  conversation  to 
which  I  was  a  favored  listener,  the  modest  young  officer 
remarked,  in  a  playful  manner,  that  something  which  I 
do  not  now  recollect  was  rather  too  democratic;  to  which 
Mrs.  Polk  replied,  that  'whatever  sustained  the  honor, 


HER    MANNER    OF    RECEIVING    GUESTS.  4I 5 

and  advanced  the  interests  of  the  country,  whether  re- 
garded as  democratic  or  not,  she  admired  and  ap- 
plauded,'    The  sentiment  was  a  truly  noble  one." 

A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  yournal  of  Com- 
merce has  also  given  to  the  public  a  sketch  of  a  visit  to 
the  Presidential  Mansion,  which  is  interesting.  "These  the 
musings  were  soon  interrupted  by  the  entrance  of  Mrs. 
Polk  who,  with  an  easy  smile  and  a  graceful  simplicity 
of  manner,  bid  me  welcome  as  an  American  citizen,  and 
partaker  of  a  common  faith.  She  bears  her  honors 
meekly,  and  surely  it  is  no  mean  elevation  to  be  the 
w'ife  of  an  American  President ;  an  elevation  to  which 
many  fond  and  ambitious  aspirations  are  doubtless  se- 
cretly cherished  in  the  bosoms  of  high-minded  American 
women,  but  which  only  one,  now  and  then,  can  enjoy. 
And  this  one,  probably,  was  among  the  last  to  expect  it, 
till  the  news  came  to  disturb  the  quietude  of  her  happy 
domestic  life  in  Tennessee. 

"Mrs.  Polk  may  be  considered  a  felicitous  specimen  of 
the  intelligent,  refined  American  lady,  who,  without  arti- 
ficial airs,  without  any  assumption  of  stateliness  of  man- 
ners, without  any  ambitious  ornaments  of  dress,  ex- 
changes the  courtesies  of  social  life,  and  demeans  her- 
self in  public,  with  a  sincerity  somewhat  rare  In  the  cur- 
rent circles  of  fashion. 

"I  cannot  but  think  that  the  basis  of  her  style  of  char- 
acter is  laid  in  a  true  and  unaffected  piety.  She  is  reg- 
ular in  her  attendance  on  divine  worship  and  on  the 
conimunion  of  the  Lord's  supper.     In  our  conversation, 


41 6  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

she  expressed  her  great  delight,  among  similar  things, 
in  having  recently  witnessed  and  welcomed  the  admis- 
sion of  three  or  four  interesting  youths  to  the  commu- 
nion of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  she  is  a 
member.  Unlike  some  of  her  predecessors,  Mrs.  Polk 
has  no  taste  for  the  gay  amusements  of  the  lovers  of 
pleasure." 

In  the  early  fall  of  1847,  the  illness  of  Mrs.  Polk  threw 
a  cloud  of  sorrow  and  apprehension  over  many  hearts  ; 
but  it  was  only  a  cloud,  and  the  recovery  of  this  beloved 
and  honored  ladv  was  hailed  with  delight  and  thanks- 
giving.  Some  one  writing  to  the  Baltimore  Sun  says : 
"This  fall  we  have  a  peculiar  sorrow,  in  the  dangerous 
illness  of  the  honored  lady  of  President  Polk.  She  came 
among  us  almost  a  stranger,  respected  on  account  of 
her  station,  but  unknown  to  most  of  us ;.  she  is  now  the 
pride  of  society,  as  well  as  the  object  of  our  tender 
affection.  The  social  circles  of  Washington  gratefully 
acknowledge  the  happiness  she  has  diffused  through 
them  ;  the  needy  and  suffering  bless  God  for  such  a 
friend.  All  admire  her  character,  all  revere  her  virtues, 
and  all  with  one  consent  join  in  supplicating  the  Father 
of  mercies  to  spare  her  long,  very  long  to  her  distin- 
ofuished  husband  and  the  friends  to  whom  she  is  so 
dear." 

A  few  days  before  the  close  of  his  administration,  a 
splendid  dinner  party  was  given  by  the  President  to 
General  Taylor.  At  the  levee,  the  same  evening,  a 
great  concourse  of  persons — acquaintances,   admirers, 


FAREWEI.I,    TO    WASIIINCJTON.  4I  7 

and  friends — assembled  to  pay  dieir  last  respects  and 
take  their  last  adieu  of  the  President  and  his  wife. 

On  Sunday  afternoon,  in  the  first  Presbyterian 
Church,  Mrs,  Polk  participated  for  the  last  time  in  the 
solemn  services  of  the  communion.  The  Rev,  Mr.  Bal- 
lentyne  addressed  the  distinguished  lady  in  a  most  ap- 
propriate manner ;  and  on  the  conclusion  of  the  cere- 
monies, the  pastor  and  a  large  number  of  the  commu- 
nicants approached  and  bade  her  an  affectionate  fare- 
well. 

The  following  morceau  appears  in  the  Washington 
Union  : 

A  FAREWELL  TO  MRS.  POLK. 

"  Lady,  farewell !  amid  the  gloom  of  grief, 

How  many  a  heart  will  utter  that  sad  sound  ! 
Farewell !   for  thee  a  thousand  hearts  will  mourn ; 

So  much  of  friendship  lost,  of  sorrow  found. 
And  thou  shall  leave  a  void  in  Friendship's  hall, 

Where  joyous  notes  were  once  so  wont  to  rise. 
Like  that  fair  Pleiad  which  forsook  its  home, 

And  caused  to  mourn  the  sisters  of  the  skies. 
But  thou  must  go  :  yet  with  thee  thou  shall  bear 

A  stranger's  hope  upon  the  distant  way. 

And  only  fade  to  give  a  calmer  day. 
A  welcome,  loo,  I'd  give  thee  to  my  home, 

My  sunny  home,  the  old  Palmetto  soil ; 
Where  many  a  heart,  all  warm  and  true  and  kind. 

Shall  chase  away  the  gloom  of  travel's  toil. 
And  may  life  pass  as  soft  as  sunset  hour. 

When  gentle  rays  gleam  on  the  skies  above, 
And  may  each  pulse  in  sweetest  union  beat 

To  the  soft  music  of  the  harp  of  love. 

"Constancy." 
27 


41 8  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

The  departure  from  Washington  and  return  to  Nash- 
ville was  a  continued  scene  of  ovation  and  triumph. 
Everywhere  along  the  route,  demonstrations  of  respect 
and  esteem  crreeted  the  distinofuished  travellers.  Arriv- 
ine  at  home,  the  citizens  of  Nashville  showed  them  everv 
possible  mark  of  regard. 

Before  the  expiration  of  Mr.  Polk's  Presidential  term, 
he  had  purchased  a  house  in  Nashville,  from  the  Hon. 
Felix  Grundy,  in  the  most  commanding  position  in  the 
city.  It  was  enlarged  and  ornamented  and  put  in  the 
most  complete  and  elegant  order.  Ever  since  it  has 
been  known  as  "  Polk  Place."  The  surroundingr  orrounds 
are  tastefully  and  elaborately  arranged  and  adorned 
with  flowers  and  shrubbery.  They  extend  from  Vine 
street  on  the  east,  to  Spruce  street  on  the  west;  and 
from  Union  street  on  the  north,  to  Polk  avenue,  which 
leads  from  the  mansion  to  Church  street,  on  the  south. 
The  dwelling  is  large  and  imposing,  and  the  grounds 
ample,  forming  one  of  the  most  attractive  places  in  the 
city.  This  was  the  chosen  spot  for  the  declining  days 
of  the  recent  occupants  of  the  White  House. 

Soon  after  their  return  from  Washington,  the  ex- 
President  and  his  wife  contemplated  a  tour  in  Europe; 
then  a  much  more  serious  undertaking  than  at  the 
present  day.  He  even  engaged  a  courier  who  could 
speak  and  write  French  and  German,  to  obviate  many 
difficulties  of  the  journey.  But  ill-health  and  the  speedy 
termination  of  the  statesman's  life,  put  an  end  to  the 
pleasant  scheme. 


DEATH    OF    MR.    POLK.  4I9 

After  the  death  of  Mr.  Polk,  a  small  but  beautiful 
temple,  of  native  marble,  was  erected  on  the  grounds 
on  the  eastern  front,  beneath  which  lie  the  remains  of 
the  distinguished  statesman.  On  three  sides  of  a  mon- 
ument within  the  temple,  there  are  full  and  lengthy 
inscriptions,  recording  the  principal  events  of  a  useful 
and  honored  life.  The  death  of  her  husband  was  the 
only  affliction  of  Mrs.  Polk's  life.  It  had  been  invari- 
ably calm,  cheerful,  and  happy.  "  In  this  great  trial  and 
deep  draught  of  the  waters  of  bitterness,  she  was  sus- 
tained and  consoled  by  the  divine  principles  and  precious 
promises  of  her  religion.  She  was  enabled  by  faith  to 
look  forward  to  a  reunion  in  the  better  land,  with  him 
on  whose  strong  arm  she  had  so  long  leaned,  and  to 
whom  her  attachment  and  companionship  had  been  so 
dear.  She  had  removed  her  membership  from  the 
church  in  Washington,  and  had  become  connected  with 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Nashville,  of  which  the 
lamented  Dr.  John  T.  Edgar  was  so  long  the  beloved 
pastor."  The  sympathizing  attention  paid  to  Mrs.  Polk 
in  her  grief  was  universal.  From  every  lady  and  gen- 
tleman of  her  wide  acquaintance  she  received  letters  of 
condolence  and  consolation. 

The  study  of  the  President,  a  large  room  in  the  sec- 
ond story,  commanding  a  view  of  the  Capitol,  is  kept  by 
Mrs.  Polk  just  as  he  left  it.  Here  are  his  books,  his 
papers,  his  pen  and  all  the  little  articles  that  betoken 
an  apartment  in  daily  use;  as  if  he  had  just  stepped  out 
and  would  soon  return.  It  is  kept  in  order  by  her  own 
hands. 


420  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

Such  public  marks  of  respect  have  been  shown  to 
Mrs.  Polk  as  it  has  been  no  other  American  lady's  for- 
tune to  receive.  Prominent  men  of  all  classes  and  call- 
ings rarely  visit  the  city  without  paying  their  respects 
to  her.  It  was  for  years  the  habit  of  the  Legislature 
to  call  upon  her,  in  a  body,  on  New  Year's  Day.  Large 
delegations  of  Masons,  of  Odd  Fellows,  and  of  Sons 
of  Temperance,  at  the  various  meetings  of  their  societies, 
have  done  themselves  the  honor  to  be  presented  to  her. 
Numbers  of  the  members  of  the  General  Assembly  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  have,  at  different  times,  visited 
Polk  Place  to  evince  their  sincere  respect  for  her  whose 
life  has  been  so  pure  and  blameless,  and  whose  Christian 
character  is  so  shining  an  example. 

During  the  Confederate  days  of  Nashville,  Mrs. 
Polk  received  the  kind  attentions  of  the  supreme  offi- 
cers;  among  others  of  Gen.  Beauregard,  of  Gen.  Breck- 
enridge,  and  of  Gen.  Preston.  Afterward,  Gen.  Buell, 
Gen.  Thomas,  Gen.  Nelson,  Gen.  Mitchell,  Gen.  Crit- 
tenden, Gen,  McCook,  Gen.  Sherman,  Gen,  Wood,  and 
many  others,  and  staff  officers  innumerable,  called  to 
pay  their  duty  to  the  distinguished  mistress  of  Polk 
Place. 

In  a  letter  from  a  visitor  at  Melrose,  the  residence 
of  Mrs,  Gov,  A,  V.  Brown,  in  the  vicinity  of  Nashville, 
is  the  following  pleasant  description  :  "Among  the  pleas- 
ures that  we  most  value  and  trust  never  to  lose,  was 
meeting  and  becoming  acquainted,  while  at  Melrose, 
with  one  of   Nashville's  most   valued   residents — Mrs, 


HER    RESIDENCE    IN    NASHVILLE.  42! 

President  Polk.  By  far  the  most  interesting  spot  in 
that  city  is  Polk  Place,  this  lady's  home,  an  elegant  and 
stately  erection,  the  portico  of  the  noblest  architecture, 
exquisite  in  design  and  proportion.  The  house  has 
large,  lofty  rooms,  a  noble  hall,  rich  in  presents  received 
by  IV[rs.  Polk  during  the  Presidential  career  of  her  hus- 
band. Amoncr  them  is  a  beautiful  drawine  of  Niagara, 
a  fine  oil  painting  of  De  Soto,  and  walking  sticks  in 
curious  shapes  and  of  precious-looking  wood.  Besides 
these,  the  walls  are  hung  with  portraits  of  illustrious 
men,  and  fine  likenesses  of  the  President,  repeated  at 
different  a^es.  In  this  cherished  retirement,  enlivened 
by  the  presence  of  a  sweet  litde  relative,  an  adopted 
daughter  of  Mrs.  Polk's,  men  of  all  parties  meet,  forget- 
ting their  political  differences  in  social  enjoyment 

"  But  the  house,  noble  as  it  is,  is  not  the  goal  of  the 
visitor's  pilgrimage.  As  at  the  Hermitage,  the  true 
shrine  is  to  be  found  in  the  shade,  the  verdure,  the  fra- 
grance of  a  sloping  garden,  amid  dazzling  masses  of 
verbena,  geraniums,  heliotrope  and  jessamine.  In  the 
centre  of  this  lovely  mosaic  is  a  fine  monument,  erected 
over  the  remains  of  him  whose  brief  and  bright  career 
was  cut  suddenly  short,  enriched  by  an  elegant  inscrip- 
tion from  Mrs.  Polk's  pen  ;  a  true  and  noble  record,  hon- 
orable alike  to  the  departed  and  to  the  survivor.  Here, 
amid  the  song  of  birds  and  the  odor  of  flowers,  we  paid 
willinor  homao-e  to  all  that  remained  of  one  who  died 
lamented  by  his  countrymen  of  every  sect  and  party. 

"His  mourners  were  two  parts,  his  friends  and  foes. 


42  2  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

He  had  kept  the  whiteness  of  his  soul,  and  thus  men  o'er 
him  wept. 

"  Meeting  Mrs.  Polk  was  like  seeing  the  original  of  a 
familiar  picture,  and  in  a  few  moments  after  seeing  her, 
we  were  surprised  to  find  ourself  forgetting,  in  a  con- 
fiding feeling,  that  we  were  conversing  with  a  lady  who 
had  presided  at  the  Executive  Mansion  with  a  wider 
popularity  than  has  since  been  attained  by  any  of  her 
successors.  She  seems  to  have  a  warm  and  unenvying 
sympathy  in  the  success  of  others,  and  in  her  conversa- 
tion there  is  an  expression  of  those  affectionate  sympa- 
thies which  made  her  beloved  in  a  more  elevated  sphere. 
She  has  a  pleasing  figure,  what  we  call  ladylike,  delicate, 
erect  and  o-raceful,  with  a  oreat  deal  of  manner,  in  the 
last  respect  resembling  the  late  Mrs.  Madison.  Mrs. 
Polk's  mental  endowments,  as  well  as  her  personal  qual- 
ities, combine  to  render  her  a  general  favorite,  while  her 
manners  and  character  give  a  permanence  to  her  social 
success  by  converting  admirers  into  friends." 

In  a  pecuniary  point  of  view,  Mrs.  Polk's  life  has 
passed  in  ease  and  affluence.  Her  father  was  compara- 
tively wealthy,  and  Mr.  Polk's  circumstances  were  always 
good.  In  addition  to  his  property  in  Tennessee,  he 
owned  a  large  and  flourishing  plantation  in  Mississippi. 
Chief-Justice  Catron,  Major  Daniel  Graham  and  other 
distinguished  personal  friends,  have  attended  to  Mrs. 
Polk's  financial  affairs  during  her  widowhood,  and  have 
thus  relieved  her  from  all  care. 

Mrs.  Polk,  though  ever  willing  to  converse,  and  always 


HER    HOME    LIFE.  423 

enriching  the  conversation  from  her  ready  store  of  in- 
formation and  observation,  is  remarkably  reticent  in  re- 
gard to  her  own  Hfc.  Her  most  familiar  friends  fail  to 
persuade  an  account  of  incidents  relating  purely  to  her- 
self. She  is  never  seen  in  public  except  at  church.  The 
visits  of  chosen  friends  are  grateful  to  her,  but  she  does 
not  return  them,  and  no  attraction  is  sufficient  to  draw 
her  far  away  from  the  home  where  cluster  so  many  dear 
and  sacred  memories.  Occasionally  she  spends  a  few 
days  with  her  relatives  in  other  counties. 

Having  no  children,  Mrs.  Polk,  some  time  after  the 
death  of  her  husband,  adopted  a  niece,  who  has  ever 
since  been  an  inmate  of  her  house.  No  employment 
could  have  served  better  to  console  the  many  lonely 
hours  that  must  be  the  inevitable  heritaore  of  a  widowed 
heart,  than  the  charge  of  a  daughter. 

Mrs.  Polk  was  born  in  the  dawn  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  and  is  a  pure  type  of  a  class  which  is  rapidly 
becoming  extinct.  With  her  will  pass  away  many  of  the 
excellences  and  not  a  few  of  the  foibles  of  a  class  mod- 
elled after  the  aristocracy  of  the  old  world  on  their 
graftings  in  the  new.  Her  life  has  been  spent  in 
an  age  and  country  where  chivalric  honor  to  woman  is 
a  matter  of  national  pride,  yet  in  a  land  of  slaves  and 
slavery.  The  young  and  middle-aged  of  to-day  will 
never  know  the  opportunities  of  time  and  means  which 
she,  half  a  century  ago,  enjoyed;  for  the  South  is  changed, 
and  verily  old  things  have  passed  away  and  all  are  new. 
The   present  generation,  thrown   more   upon  their  own 


424  SARAH    CHILDRESS    POLK. 

resources,  and  passing  through  the  perplexities  of  change 
and  misfortune,  will  grow  away  from  the  old  regime,  and 
may  perhaps  lose  many  of  their  virtues  with  too  few  of 
their  faults. 

Durinor  the  late  civil  war,  she  suffered  in  common  with 
the  people  of  the  South,  losing  much  of  her  valuable 
property,  but  was  fortunately  left  with  sufficient  means 
to  enable  her  to  live  in  her  usual  style  of  comfort.  Her 
sympathies  were  with  the  section  of  country  in  which 
she  was  reared,  but  her  conduct  was  throughout  be- 
fitting her  station,  and  no  expression  or  action  of  hers  is 
a  reflection  of  aught  save  refined  bearing  and  high-toned 
sensibility. 

Surrounded  with  comforts  and  luxuries,  and  enjoying 
the  companionship  of  her  relatives  and  friends,  Mrs.  Polk 
glides  calmly  down  the  vale  of  years,  with  the  memory 
of  a  past  all  brightness,  and  the  hopes  of  a  future  all 
peace.  The  lifetime  imitation  of  a  pure  and  useful 
standard  of  excellence  has  rewarded  her  with  a  glorious 
fame,  and  she  dwells  among  the  friends  of  her  youth, 
honored  and  respected,  trusted  and  beloved. 


XVI. 

MARGARET     TAYLOR. 

The  importance  attached  to  Presidential  honors  is  not 
in  our  country  the  inheritance  of  persons  born  to  the 
wearing  of  them.  Monarchial  governments,  by  tradition 
and  law,  designate  not  only  who  is  the  "  chief  magis- 
trate," but  also  provide  candidates  in  advance  for  the 
succession.  People,  therefore,  born  to  such  high  estate 
are  always,  from  infancy  onward,  objects  of  world-wide 
interest;  and  the  minutest  acts  of  their  lives,  before  they 
achieve  their  inherited  position  as  well  as  after,  are  sub- 
jects of  note  from  a  thousand  pens. 

In  our  own  country  the  popular  will  selects  its  candi- 
dates  for  the  highest  office  within  its  gift  as  often  from 
those  who  have  suddenly  received  popularity  as  from 
those  who  have,  by  antecedent  history,  become  known 
to  fame.  It  is  probably  true  that,  just  before  the 
breaking  out  of  actual  hostilities  between  this  country 
and  Mexico,  there  was  no  military  officer — his  long  and 
faithful  public  service  considered — who  was  as  little 
known  to  the  country  at  large  as  General  Taylor. 

That  the  future  Mistress  of  the  White  House  who 
was  buried  in  the  seclusion  of  his  retired  private  life, 
should  be  little  known  out  of  her  domestic  circle,  is  there- 
fore not  surprising;   and  that  a   family,  the  members  of 

which  had  always  courted  seclusion   and  were   satisfied 

(425) 


426  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

with  making  perfect  the  narrow  circle  of  their  accepted 
duties,  should  shrink  from  publicity  and  notice,  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at;  and,  as  a  consequence,  there  is  but 
little  left  to  afford  material  for  the  pen  of  the  historian. 

Mrs.  Taylor  and  her  daughter  "Betty,"  who  for  a 
while  shone  forth  as  the  acknowledged  "  first  ladies  of 
the  land,"  never  sympathized  with  the  display  and  bustle 
of  the  White  House,  and  they  always  performed  such 
official  duties  as  were  imperatively  forced  upon  them,  by 
their  exalted  position,  as  a  task  that  had  no  compensa- 
tion for  the  sacrilices  attending  it. 

The  key  to  Mrs.  Taylor's  life  was  touched  by  General 
Taylor  himself,  who,  when  receiving  from  an  appointed 
speaker,  at  Baton  Rouge,  the  official  announcement  that 
he  was  elected  President  of  the  United  States,  among 
other  thinors  said: 

"  For  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century,  my  house  has 
been  the  tent,  and  my  home  the  battle-field."  This  state- 
ment, which  might  have  been  used  with  propriety  as  fig- 
urative language  by  any  officer  who  had  been  for  more 
than  a  quarter  of  a  century  on  active  duty,  was  literally 
true  of  General  Taylor's  experience.  He  was  emphati- 
cally a  hard-working  officer:  either  from  choice  or  acci- 
dent, his  public  life  was  never  varied  by  those  terms  of 
"official  repose"  which  give  officers  a  rest  at  Washing- 
ton, at  West  Point,  or  at  head-quarters  in  some  large 
city. 

On  the  contrary.  General  Taylor,  from  the  time  he 
entered  the  army  as  a  lieutenant  until  he  laid  aside  his 


LIFE    ON    THE    FRONTIER.  427 

well-earned  commission  as  a  Major-General  to  assume 
the  highest  responsibility  of  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Army  and  Navy,  had  never  been  out  of  what  might  be 
termed  the  severest  frontier  duties. 

He  was  known  as  having  acquired  the  largest  ex- 
perience as  an  Indian  fighter.  He  was  alike  the  hero 
of  the  "  Black  Hawk,"  as  he  was  the  most  prominent 
officer  in  the  Seminole  war.  Hence  it  is  that  Mrs. 
Taylor,  more  than  any  other  mistress  of  the  White 
House,  had  seen  more  army  service,  and  passed  through 
more  varied  frontier  experiences ;  for  she  would  never. 
under  any  circumstances,  if  she  could  avoid  it,  separate 
herself  from  her  husband,  no  matter  how  severe  were 
the  trials  resulting  from  wifely  devotion. 

This  heroic  spirit,  that  gives  such  grace  and  beauty  to 
useful  qualities,  carried  her  cheerfully  to  Tampa  Bay, 
that  she  miofht  be  near  her  husband  when  he  was  en- 
dcavoring  to  suppress  the  wily  Seminoles  in  the  swamps 
?md  everglades  of  Florida ;  and  as  the  long  previous 
years  in  the  western  country  made  her  familiar  with  the 
attributes  of  savage  triumphs,  so  the  final  defeats  that 
eventually  secured  our  settlers  a  peaceful  home  on  the 
rich  plains  of  Mexico,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  the 
prosperity  of  the  great  West. 

In  all  this  quarter  of  a  century  so  feelingly  alluded  to  by 
General  Taylor,  as  the  time  when  his  house  was  a  tent  and 
his  home  the  battle-field,  it  was  seldom  that  Mrs.  Taylor 
was  not  at  his  side,  bearing  her  share  of  the  hardships  in- 
cidental to  her  husband's  life,  and  cheerfully  attending  to 


428  MARGARET    TAYLOR. 

the  duties  which  fell  to  her  to  perform.  All  this  while  the 
modest  accommodations  were  acceptable,  the  log-cabin  in 
winter,  the  tent  if  necessary  in  summer,  with  the  coarse 
but  substantial  food  of  the  soldiers,  and  often  even  this 
not  in  abundance.  Deprived  of  the  little  elegancies 
which  are  so  necessary  for  a  woman's  comfort — sepa- 
rated from  the  society  of  her  children,  who  were  almost 
always  away  at  school — nothing  stood  in  the  way  of  her 
fealty  to  her  husband,  and  she  was  content  thus  to  live. 

Through  all  these  trying  circumstances  Mrs.  Taylor, 
by  her  good  sense,  her  modesty,  her  uncomplaining 
spirit,  her  faculty  of  adding  to  the  comforts  and  sur- 
roundings of  her  husband's  life,  filled  the  measure  of  her 
duty,  and  set  an  example  of  the  true  woman,  especially 
a  soldier's  wife,  that  her  sex  for  all  time  can  admire  and 
point  to  as  worthy  of  imitation. 

Her  domestic  duties,  so  far  as  they  related  to  the  com- 
fort of  her  family,  she  would  never  intentionally  abandon 
for  a  single  day  to  menial  hands.  Especially  was  she 
careful  in  the  preparation  of  the  food  for  the  table,  and 
however  simple  the  meal  might  be,  she  saw  that  the  ma- 
terial was  carefully  prepared.  And  this  home  training 
General  Taylor  displayed  when  in  Northern  Mexico, 
away  from  his  domestic  care ;  for  while  he  was  indiffer- 
ent to  a  degree  about  luxuries,  yet  what  he  did  eat,  he 
persisted  in  having  carefully  selected  and  prepared  with 
due  regard  to  healthfulness ;  and  his  tent  was  ever  a 
model  of  neatness  and  rude  comfort. 

Mrs.  Taylor's  maiden  name  was  Margaret  Smith.    She 


HER    DOMESTIC    ACCOMrLISIIMENTS.  429 

was  born  in  Maryland,  and  came  of  a  family  identified 
for  their  substantial  qualities  which  distinguished  intelli- 
gent aericulturists.  She  received  such  an  education  as 
was  ^t  the  command  of  female  pupils  in  the  beginning- 
of  the  century.  An  education  which  considered  the 
practical,  rather  than  the  intellectual,  and  to  this  plane 
of  her  school  life  she  was  trained  with  special  care  in 
all  the  accomplishments  of  domestic  duties. 

"  Maryland  house-keeping  "  was  for  years  in  the  south- 
west, and  is  still  among  the  "  old  settlers,"  a  compli- 
mentary remark,  if  applied  to  a  lady  from  any  part  of 
the  country,  so  excellent  was  considered  the  housewives' 
work  of  those  who  learned  their  duties  on  the  tide- 
waters of  the  Chesapeake  Bay,  and  among  those  exam- 
ples of  domestic  perfection  in  her  State,  Mrs.  Taylor  was 
eminent.  And  to  be  more  than  this — to  make  her  home 
happy — she  evidently  had  no  ambition.  Marrying  an 
officer  of  the  United  States  army,  who  was  born  in  Ken- 
tucky, and  was  appointed  from  private  life,  her  husband 
had  no  associations  that  took  him  to  the  North,  which, 
independent  of  official  opportunities,  are  increased  by  a 
student's  career  at  West  Point.  "  Captain  Taylor  "  was 
therefore,  from  the  beginning  of  his  public  life,  confined 
to  the  frontiers,  and  was  known  as  one  of  the  "  hard- 
working," and  "  fighting  officers."  His  boyhood  days 
were  made  up  of  adventures  with  Indians,  and  around 
the  fireside  of  his  own  home,  listening  to  his  father  and 
his  father's  friends,  talk  over  the  struggles,  sufferings, 
and  triumphs  they  endured  as  active  participators  in  the 


430  MAl<(i.M<K|-   'i-.wr.oR. 

Revolution,  under  the  leadership  of  General  Washington 
and  General  Wayne,  and  of  their  subsequent  hard  lives 
after  they  left  Virginia,  to  found  homes  "  in  the  dark  and 
bloody  ground." 

To  accept  with  pleasure  the  incidents  of  the  conse- 
quent life  was  the  true  spirit  of  the  American  heroine, 
and  to  adorn  it  through  long  3'ears  of  privations  and 
sufferings  as  Mrs.  Taylor  did,  is  the  noblest  tribute  that 
can  be  paid  to  her  virtues.  For  sixteen  years  after  the 
conclusion  of  our  second  war  with  England,  the  time 
indicated  in  history  as  the  "  treaty  of  Ghent,"  Major 
Taylor  spent  an  active  life  in  what  was  then  known  as 
our  western  frontiers.  He  established  forts  and  corre- 
sponded with  the  Government  on  Indian  affairs.  His 
custom  was  to  personally  superintend  the  varied  and 
difficult  labors  imposed  upon  him.  All  this  while  he  was 
literally  in  the  savage  wilderness,  and  Mrs.  Taylor,  then 
a  young  wife,  persistently  accompanied  him.  To  her 
attentions  to  her  husband  the  country  was  largely  in- 
debted for  his  usefulness,  and  by  her  influence  and 
example  the  subordinates,  who  were  attached  to  the 
pioneer  arm3^  were  made  contented  and  uncomplaining. 

This  era  of  Mrs.  Taylor's  life  she  was  wont  always  to 
speak  of  with  subdued  enthusiasm. 

It  was  while  thus  living  that  her  children  were  born. 
They  followed  her  fortunes  as  long  as  a  mother's  care  was 
absolutely  necessary  for  their  safety  ;  but  the  moment 
they  were  sufficiently  matured  to  leave  her  protection, 
she   submitted  to  the  painful   sacrifice  of  having  them 


AT    TAMPA    RAY.  43 1 

sent  to  her  relatives  in  the  "settlements,"  for  a  less 
perilous  life  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  facilities  of  educa- 
tional institutions;  but  she  never  thought  of  abandoning 
her  husband,  her  first  duty  being  for  his  interest  and  com- 
fort. It  is  not  surprising  that  when  the  "Florida  war" 
began,  that  the  Captain  Taylor  of  twenty  years  previous 
was  now  a  Colonel,  and  that  his  past  services  should 
have  secured  for  him  the  difficult  and  dangerous  honor 
of  taking  command  against  the  treacherous  Seminoles 
of  the  Evero^lades.  True  to  the  characteristics  of  his 
whole  life,  he  quietly  proceeded  to  this  new  field  of 
action,  and  to  the  surprise  of  the  country,  the  people  of 
which  now  began  to  know  Colonel  Taylor,  it  was  heralded 
in  the  papers  that  Mrs.  Taylor  had  established  herself 
at  Tampa  Bay.  It  was  looked  upon  at  the  time  as  a 
piece  of  unpardonable  recklessness  that  she  should  thus 
risk  her  life,  when  to  the  outward  world  the  odds  at  the 
time  seemed  to  be  against  her  husband's  success.  But 
she  evidently  knew  his  character  and  her  own  duty  best, 
and  throup^h  the  lastincr  strucrfrle,  made  so  terrible  and 
romantic  by  the  incidents  of  the  battle  of  Okee-Chobee, 
Mrs.  Taylor  was  of  immense  service  in  superintending 
the  wants  of  the  sick  and  wounded,  but  more  especially 
so  by  shedding  over  disaster  the  hopefulness  created 
by  her  self-possession  and  seeming  insensibility  to  the 
probability  of  the  failure  of  her  husband's  final  triumph 
over  the  enemy. 

At  the  conclusion  of  active  hostilities,  the  then  Secre- 
tary of  War,  addressing  Gen.  Jessup,  said:  "You  will 


432  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

establish  posts  at  Tampa,  and  on  the  eastern  shore,  and 
wherever  else  they  are  in  your  opinion  necessary  to  pre- 
serve the  peace  of  the  country ;  and  I  would  suggest  the 
propriety  of  leaving  Col.  Zachary  Taylor,  of  the  First 
infantry,  in  command  of  them,"  Agreeably  to  this  order, 
General  Taylor  in  time  of  peace  repeated  his  previously 
pursued  life  on  the  northwestern  frontiers,  of  forming 
new  military  stations  in  the  wilderness  and  paving  the 
way  for  the  amelioration  of  peaceful  populations.  If  he 
had  one  thought  that  he  needed  repose,  or  that  his 
patriotism  was  overtaxed  by  such  a  continued  demand  on 
his  time,  he  had  the  comforts  of  a  home  and  a  devoted 
wife  with  him,  and  thus  cheered  and  sustained,  he 
patiently  performed  his  severe  duties;  thus  the  country 
was  indebted  to  Mrs.  Taylor  for  the  constant  services 
performed  by  her  gallant  husband. 

In  the  year  1840,  General  Taylor,  who  now  had 
almost  become  forgotten  in  this  obscurity  of  the  Florida 
swamps,  asked  to  be  relieved  of  his  command,  and 
soon  afterward  arrived  with  his  family  in  New  Orleans. 
The  "Old  Colonel,"  as  he  was  called  by  the  citizens  of 
Louisiana,  came  unostentatiously,  and  was  permitted, 
much  to  his  own  gratification,  to  proceed  quietly  to 
Baton  Rouge,  which  place  should  be  for  a  while,  at  least, 
the  head-quarters  of  his  family.  With  this  understand- 
ing, Mrs.  Taylor  joyfully  established  herself  with  sur- 
roundinCTs  more  comfortable  than  were  afforded  in  the 
Florida  swamps. 

This  idea  encouraged  her  to  arrange  a  home  which  she 


HER  COTTAGE  AT  BATON  ROUGE.         433 

hoped  would  be  abandoned  only  when  the  "  General " 
had  selected  some  quiet  place,  where  they  would  to- 
g-ether peacefully  end  their  days. 

The  barracks  at  Baton  Rouge  are  picturesquely  situ- 
ated upon  the  high  land,  that  here,  in  a  sort  of  a  penin- 
sula, rising  out  of  the  surrounding  level,  reaches  the 
river.  The  soldiers  usually  quartered  at  Baton  Rouge 
were  mustering  along  the  banks  of  the  Red  river,  and 
the  buildings  were  left,  save  a  single  company  of  infantry, 
without  occupants,  and  Mrs.  Taylor  could  select  her 
"quarters"  with  all  the  facilities  the  place  afforded. 
Leaving  the  imposing  brick  buildings,  with  their  com- 
fortable arrangements  for  housekeeping,  to  the  entire 
possession  of  one  or  two  officers'  families,  Mrs.  Taylor 
selected  a  little  tumble-down  cottage,  situated  directly 
on  the  banks  of  the  river,  which  was  originally  erected' 
for,  and  inhabited  by  the  Captain-commandant,  when  the 
post  belonged  to  Spain. 

In  the  long  years  of  its  existence,  the  cottage,  co-rasist- 
ing  only  of  a  suite  of  three  or  four  rooms,  inclosed 
under  galleries,  had  become  quaint  in  appearance  and 
much  out  of  repair,  and  was  hardly  considered  else  than 
a  sort  of  admitted  wreck  of  former  usefulness,  left  be- 
cause it  was  a  harmless,  familiar  object,  entirely  out  of 
the  way  of  the  lawn  and  parade  ground.  To  Mrs.  Taylor's 
eye,  this  old  cottage  seemed  to  possess  peculiar  charms, 
for  she  prompdy  decided  to  give  up  the  better  quarters 
at  her  disposal,  as  the  wife  of  the  Commander-in-Chief 
of  the  military  department,  and  move  into  this  cottage. 

28 


434  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

With  the  aid  of  her  own  servants,  two  in  number,  and 
the  usual  assistance  always  afforded  by  invalid  soldiers 
unfit  for  military  duties,  she  soon  put  the  neglected  place 
in  proper  order.  It  was  remarked  by  the  people  of 
Baton  Rouge,  how  rapidly  the  old  "  Spanish  Comman- 
dant's cottage"  became  transformed  into  a  comfortable 
dwelling  under  the  superintendence  of  the  new  occu- 
pants. And  in  a  country  where  so  much  is  left  to  ser- 
vants, and  where  the  mistress  and  daughters  had  so 
many  at  command,  they  set  the  noble  example  of  doing 
much  themselves. 

The  work  employed  their  minds,  and  they  were  hap- 
pier in  the  performance  of  the  details  of  their  well-di- 
rected industry.  It  is  certainly  true  that  Mrs.  Taylor 
and  her  daughter.  Miss  Betty,  were  evidently  too  much 
engaged  in  managing  their  household  duties  to  have 
time  for  unhappiness  or  regrets,  if  they  had  cause  to 
indulge  in  them. 

The  house  had  but  four  rooms,  surrounded  on  all  sides 
by  a  verandah,  and  thus  in  the  hottest  weather  there 
was  always  a  shady  side,  and  in  the  coldest,  one  most 
sheltered ;  and  so  cozy  and  comfortable  did  the  house 
become  under  the  management  of  its  new  mistress,  that 
Mrs.  Taylor  was  most  thoroughly  justified  in  her  choice 
by  the  universal  commendation  of  the  citizens  of  the 
town — that  it  was  now  the  pleasantest  residence  in  all 
the  country  round,  and  its  inmates  were  probably  as 
contented  and  happy  as  people  can  be. 

General  Taylor  himself  w^as   not  idle,  but  was  kept 


DOMESTIC   QUIET.  435 

busy  visiting  Fort  Gibson  and  Fort  Smith,  until  finally, 
to  be  near  his  family,  was  at  his  own  request  transferred 
to  Fort  Jessup,  Louisiana.  He  bought  the  house  se- 
lected by  his  family,  within  his  military  department. 
The  domestic  life  of  General  Taylor's  family  was  now 
complete.  He  had  performed  public  duties  enough  his 
friends  thought,  to  permit  him  to  indulge  in  the  luxury 
of  being  left  quietly  at  the  head-quarters  of  a  frontier 
department,  where  he  could  enjoy  repose  from  severe 
military  duties,  look  after  his  neglected  private  interests, 
and  for  the  few  years  that  remained  live  a  kind  of 
private  life.  Alas !  how  the  dream  was  to  be  dissi- 
pated. 

Texas  was  at  this  time  a  State,  acting  independently 
of  Mexico,  yet  unacknowledged  as  such  by  the  mother 
country.  The  Texans,  inspired  by  the  difficulties  of 
their  situation,  and  surrounded  by  political  influence  in 
the  United  States,  agitated  the  question  of  coming  into 
the  Union.  The  result  was  that  General  Santa  Anna, 
then  President  of  Mexico,  made  preparations  which  con- 
templated the  reassertion  of  the  national  government  in 
the  revolted  province. 

This  naturally  made  the  southern  border  line  of  Lou- 
isiana, the  Sabine,  an  object  of  attack,  and  as  General 
Taylor  had,  with  the  idea  of  being  left  in  peaceful  retire- 
ment, asked  to  be  in  command  in  Louisiana,  he  uncon- 
sciously placed  himself  in  the  very  position  that  was  to 
call  him  into  a  more  active  and  important  field  oi  duty 
than  had  yet  been  entrusted  to  him. 


, 


436  MARGARET    TAYLOR. 

Mrs.  Taylor,  meantime,  painfully  unconscious  of  the 
drama  that  was  opening  before  her,  calmly  and  full  of 
content,  went  about  her  domestic  duties.  A  garden  was 
planted,  and  she  cherished  the  first  signs  of  the  growing 
vegetation  with  almost  childish  delight.  Her  old  friends 
among  the  citizens  of  the  neighborhood  made  friendly 
visits.  Miss  Betty,  who  was  now  in  the  very  perfection 
of  her  blooming  womanhood,  was  popular  with  the 
young  ladies  of  her  age  and  station. 

The  "old  General"  was  here  and  there,  according  to 
his  habits ;  one  day  away  attending  to  some  military' 
matter,  then  enjoying  what  seemed  to  him  an  endles? 
source  of  interest,  the  examination  of  the  workings  of 
plantation  life.  He  began,  in  fact,  to  assume  the  airs  cS 
an  ao^riculturist;  invested  what  means  he  had  in  a  cotto't 
farm  on  the  Mississippi,  and  looked  forward  to  the  timi» 
when  his  income  would  be  large  and  liberal  for  the  pur  • 
suits  of  peace. 

All  this  time  to  the  south  of  General  Taylor's  military 
department  there  were  signs  of  trouble,  and  one  day  he 
received  from  the  Adjutant-General  of  the  Army  a  letter, 
which  announced  that  there  was  great  danger  of  a  hos- 
tile incursion  of  Indians  on  the  southern  border  of  his 
department.  The  letter  thus  concluded:  "Should  the 
apprehended  hostilities  with  the  Indians  alluded  to  break 
lOut,  an  officer  of  rank — probably  yourself — will  be  sent 
to  command  the  United  States  forces  to  be  put  in  the 
field." 

The  quiet  domestic  life  so  much  desired  by  Mrs.  Taylor 


HER    PRACTICAL    EFFORTS.  437 

was  becomino-  a  dream.  The  events  which  followed  so 
rapidly  soon  placed  her  husband  on  the  banks  of  the  Sa- 
bine as  commander-in-chief  of  the  "Army  of  Occupation." 
A  succeeding  order,  and  he  invaded  the  disputed  terri- 
tory, and  by  one  single  stride  rose  from  the  comparative 
obscurity  of  a  frontier  fighter  to  be  the  observed  of  all 
the  world,  in  a  conflict  where  two  Christian  nations  were 
to  struggle  for  supremacy  in  an  appeal  to  arms.  The 
succeeding  actions,  that  began  at  Palo  Alto  and  ended 
at  Buena  Vista,  made  him  for  the  time  being  a  hero. 
While  these  events  were  culminating,  Mrs.  Taylor  and 
Miss  Betty  remained  in  the  little  cottage  on  the  banks 
of  the  Mississippi,  each  hour  becoming  objects  of  greater 
interest,  and  from  their  quietness  and  unobtrusive  life 
making  themselves  dear  to  the  nation. 

But  the  applause  and  flattery  that  began  to  reach  the 
inmates  of  the  old  Spanish  cottage  made  no  apparent 
impression.  Mrs.  Taylor,  while  her  husband  distin- 
guished himself  on  the  Rio  Grande,  only  worked  harder 
in  her  little  garden,  and  she  had  no  superior  among  the 
planters  of  the  vicinity  of  Baton  Rouge  in  the  raising  of 
succulent  luxuries  for  the  table,  and  she  seemingly  took 
more  pride  in  showing  these  triumphs  of  her  industry 
than  she  did  in  hearing  compliments  upon  her  husband's 
growing  fame.  Nay,  more  than  this,  she  instituted  a 
miniature  dairy,  and  added  to  her  other  comforts  what 
was  almost  unknown  at  the  time  in  the  vicinit)' — an 
abundance  of  fresh  milk  and  butter.  It  may  be  readily 
imagined   that  with  such  care  and  supervision  the  little 


438  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

cottaee  in  the  o-arrison  was  illustrative  of  domestic  com- 
fort  nowhere  else  surpassed.  Thus  practically  Mrs. 
Taylor  taught  the  young  wives  of  the  officers  residing  in 
the  barracks  their  duties,  and  prepared  them  by  her  ex- 
cellent example  to  perform  the  arduous  task  imposed 
upon  them  as  soldiers' wives  in  a  manner  best  calculated 
to  insure  their  own  happiness  and  secure  honor  and  re- 
nown to  their  patriotic  husbands.  • 

But  Mrs.  Taylor's  usefulness  did  not  end  with  the  per- 
fect performance  of  her  household  responsibilities.  The 
town  of  Baton  Rouge  at  this  time  had  no  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church.  It  was  a  want  which  she,  in  common 
with  other  officers'  wives  and  some  few  persons  in  the 
village,  felt  keenly;  and  in  her  quiet,  practical  way,  she 
set  about  meeting  the  demand.  It  was,  of  course,  only 
necessary  for  her  to  designate  a  proper  room  in  the  gar- 
rison buildings  to  be  used  as  a  chapel,  when  it  was  at 
once  prepared  for  that  purpose.  She  superintended 
with  others  the  labor  necessary  to  fit  up  a  chapel,  then 
used  her  influence  to  secure  the  occasional  services  of  a 
rector  who  resided  at  some  distance  away.  Meantime 
her  expressed  wish  that  "  the  service  "  be  regularly  read 
was  responded  to,  and  thus  was  secured  to  Baton  Rouge 
a  commencement  of  a  rehVIous  movement  that  in  a  few 
subsequent  years  crystallized  in  the  building  of  a  hand- 
some church,  and  the  establishment  of  a  permanent  and 
intelli<jent  conorreQ^ation. 

This  garrison  chapel  in  time  became  a  place  of  great 
interest.     Owing  to  active  hostilities  in  Mexico  the  nuni' 


COMFORTING    THE    SORROWING.  439 

ber  of  officers'  wives  increased,  and  it  included,  as  may 
be  supposed,  some  of  the  most  accomplished  and  elegant 
ladies  in  the  land.  Their  husbands,  gallant  and  noble 
soldiers,  were  involved  in  the  duties  of  actual  war,  and 
they,  brave-hearted  and  courageous,  comforted  each 
other.  As  the  news  came  that  actual  collision  was 
threatened,  some  of  these  ladies,  unable  to  control  their 
anxiety  for  the  safety  of  their  husbands,  would  be  over- 
come with  suppressed  emotion,  and  grow  for  the  mo- 
ment wild  with  terror.  It  was  on  these  occasions  that 
Mrs.  Taylor  and  Miss  Betty  maintained  their  self-pos- 
session, and  had  kind  words  and  hopeful  suggestions  for 
those  suffering  sisters.  And  when  at  last  some  rumors 
reached  Baton  Rouge  of  battles  fought,  of  blood  being 
shed,  of  men  and  officers  falling  in  the  strife  ;  when  those 
heart-stricken  wives  and  daughters  of  the  soldiers  en- 
gaged were  left  to  the  agony  of  apprehension,  Mrs. 
Taylor,  still  always  calm  and  cheerful,  was  a  constant 
source  of  comfort,  and  shed  around  her  an  atmosphere 
of  hope,  an  inspiration  of  true  courage.  At  last  when 
names  were  given  of  those  who  fell  on  the  fields  of  Palo 
Alto  and  Resaca  de  la  Palma,  the  stricken  ones  of  the 
garrison  suppressed  their  wild  sorrow,  lest  they  should 
wound  the  feelings  of  their  superior  in  rank  and  influ- 
ence, and  in  the  litde  chapel  founded  by  Mrs.  Taylor 
sought,  through  the  holy  influences  of  religion,  that  con- 
solation that  could  reconcile  them  to  the  irretrievable  loss 
of  friends,  brothers,  fathers  and  husbands.  There  was 
at   this  time,  amid  these  scenes  of  actual  war,  a  bit  of 


440  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

domestic  history  revived  in   Mrs.  Taylor's  mind  that  no 
doubt  made  a  strong  impression. 

General  Taylor  was  a  great  admirer  of  business  men, 
and  was  opposed  to  his  daughters  marrying  officers  ot 
the  army.  He  condemned  his  own  life  by  saying  thz.r. 
soldiers  never  had  a  home,  and  in  this  sentiment  was 
cordially  sustained  by  Mrs.  Taylor,  who  no  doubt  in  her 
heart  reviewed  her  varied  life  from  place  to  place  on  the 
frontiers,  and  her  constant  separations  from  her  husband, 
with  a  regret  she  could  not  conceal.  It  was  this  cause 
that  called  forth  so  much  opposition  from  the  family  to 
Lieutenant  Jefferson  Davis  marrying  the  second  daugh- 
ter, Sarah,  which  opposition  resulted  in  an  elopement 
and  runaway  marriage.  General  Taylor,  at  the  time  this 
occurred,  was  away  from  home  on  military  service,  and 
when  he  heard  of  it  he  expressed  himself  in  the  most 
unmeasured  terms  of  disapprobation.  He  seemed  ut- 
terly insensible  to  the  feelings  which  inspired  the  young 
people  in  such  an  adventure,  and  persisted  In  looking 
upon  "young  Davis"  as  having  done  a  dishonorable 
thing,  and  his  daughter  as  being  entirely  regardless  of 
her  filial  obligations.  To  all  protests  calculated  to 
lessen  his  Indignation,  he  would  make  the  Invariable 
replies,  "  that  no  honorable  man  would  thus  defy  the 
wishes  of  parents,  and  no  truly  affectionate  daughter  be 
so  regardless  of  her  duty. '  General  Taylor,  though  a 
man  of  strong  Impulses,  and  possessed  of  but  little 
training  to  conceal  his  feelings,  except  what  military  dis- 
cipline enforced,  was  at  heart  of  a  generous  and  for- 


DEATH    OF    HER    DAUGHTER.  44 1 

giving  nature  ;  and  no  doubt  time  would  have  brought 
about  its  softening:  influences,  and  the  usual  endinof  which 
follows  all  runaway  matches  would  have  taken  place, — 
reconciliation  and  entire  forgiveness.  But  ere  this  oc- 
curred, within  a  few  short  months  of  her  marriage,  Mrs. 
Davis  suddenly  died,  and  a  beloved  child  upon  whom 
he  had  garnered  all  his  affections  passed  forever  away, 
the  last  words  she  had  from  him  being  diose  of  reproof 
and  condemnation.  This  incident  and  the  sudden  death 
of  her  daughter  left  a  deep  impression  upon  Mrs.  Tay- 
lor's life.  NaturaUy  of  a  quiet  disposition  and  living 
from  necessity  almost  entirely  away  from  inlluences  of 
society,  this  sad  domestic  history  was  left  to  make  the 
,f]^reatest  possible  impression  upon  her  mind.  That  Gen- 
«t'ral  Taylor  keenly  cherished  for  long  years  his  sense  of 
sorrow  was  destined  to  be  most  romantically  displayed. 
Mis  call  for  volunteer  troops  at  the  time  he  believed  his 
little  army  was  imperilled,  on  the  eve  ot  its  memorable 
march  from  Corpus  Chiisti  to  the  Rio  Grande,  was  an- 
j'.wered  promptly  by  Louisiana  and  Mississippi.  The  last- 
named  State  promptly  organized  a  splendid  regiment, 
composed  of  the  very  elite  of  the  native  young  men,  and 
Jefferson  Davis  was  elected  its  commander. 

At  Monterey  the  i  st  Mississippi  regiment  was  sta- 
tioned at  one  of  the  forts  in  the  suburbs  of  the  city,  and 
in  the  battle  that  ended  with  the  defeat  of  Ampudia,  its 
Mexican  defender,  Jefferson  Davis  received  a  slight 
wound.  Before  this  event,  at  the  time  and  subsequently, 
it  was  noticed  that  Colonel  Davis  and  General  Taylor 


442  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

had  never  met,  and  it  was  evident  that  this  was  designed 
and  not  the  result  of  accident — there  was  an  under- 
standing seemingly  that  kept  them  apart.  The  cause  of 
this  was  freely  discussed,  and  it  came  to  the  surface  that 
a  reconciliation  had  never  taken  place  between  General 
Taylor  and  Colonel  Davis  on  account  of  the  elopement, 
and  so  things  remained  until  the  close  of  the  three  days' 
struggle  that  ended  in  triumph  at  Buena  Vista.  It  was 
on  the  occasion  when  victory  seemed  hesitating  where 
she  should  bestow  her  wreath — when  the  men  of  the 
North  and  the  West  had  exhausted  their  energies — when 
Clay,  Crittenden,  Yell,  and  their  brave  compatriots  slept 
in  death  on  the  bloody  field — at  this  moment,  when 
Santa  Anna  believed  and  announced  himself  the  hero 
of  the  field,  and  when  he  concentrated  his  favorite  troops 
to  make  a  last  charge  upon  our  dispirited  and  exhausted 
columns,  that  Colonel  Davis,  at  the  head  of  his  Missis- 
sippi regiment,  nobly  sustained  the  shock,  and  sent  the 
foe  back  disappointed  and  dismayed.  Then  it  was  that 
"  Old  Zach,"  seeing  by  whom  he,  his  gallant  men,  and 
his  country's  honor,  had  been  saved,  had  no  place  in 
his  heart  but  for  gratitude,  and  the  long  estranged 
embraced  each  other  and  wept  tears  of  reconciliation 
upon  the  battle-field. 

Time  passed  on,  and  General  Taylor  completed  his 
brilliant  campaign.  Our  country  had  then,  for  nearly 
two  generations,  been  unused  to  war,  and  the  magnificent 
achievements  of  old  "  Rough  and  Ready  "  filled  the  hearts 
of  the  people  with  the  intensest  admiration.     The  old 


HER    HUSBAND    RETURNS    HOME.  443 

cottage  on  the  low  bluff  at  Baton  Rouge  gradually  be- 
came of  classic  interest.  Grateful  people  travelling 
along  the  highway  of  the  great  Mississippi,  representing 
every  State  in  the  Union,  and  every  civilized  nation  of 
the  earth,  would  admiringly  point  out  General  Taylor's 
residence.  If  any  of  those  great  western  floating  palaces 
stopped  at  Baton  Rouge,  some  of  the  passengers  would 
climb  up  the  hill  and  visit  the  "garrison  grounds,"  and 
the  young  ladies  especially  would  make  the  pilgrim- 
age in  hopes  they  might  see  Miss  Betty,  who  they  with 
woman's  quickness  of  perception,  felt  was  to  be  the  first 
lady  of  the  land,  by  presiding  at  the  White  House. 

How  much  the  neatness  of  that  home,  its  characteris- 
tic simplicity,  its  quiet  domestic  comforts,  the  self-posses- 
sion and  unpretending,  yet  lady-like  manners  of  its  in- 
mates, impressed  themselves  on  the  public,  and  prepared 
the  way  for  that  popular  affection  that  greeted  General 
Taylor  on  his  return  from  Mexico,  and  culminated  in  his 
triumphant  election  to  the  Presidency,  is  difficult  to 
decide  ;  but  that  it  had  an  element  of  strength  and  of 
vast  importance  is  certain,  and  presents  in  a  strong  view 
how  much  can  be  done  by  the  devoted,  sensible  wife,  in 
aiding-  her  husband  in  achieving  success. 

Meantime,  General  Taylor  returned,  the  triumphant 
soldier,  to  the  United  States.  However  wonderful  were 
the  subsequent  victories  achieved  over  the  Mexicans,  in 
the  brilliant  march  from  Vera  Cruz  to  the  City  of  Aztecs, 
the  novelty  of  the  war  when  this  was  enacted,  was  gone. 
The  first  impressions  remained  vivid,  the  subsequent  ones 


444  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

were  received  with  gratification,  but  not  enthusiasm. 
General  Taylor  returned,  not  only  a  military  hero,  but 
over  his  head  was  suspended  the  wreath  of  an  approach- 
ing civic  triumph ;  and  the  little  cottage  on  the  bank  of 
the  Mississippi  that  Mrs.  Taylor  selected  for  her  strictly 
private  residence,  became  a  Mecca  for  pilgrims  from  all 
lands,  and  for  more  than  a  year  it  was  the  centre  of  inter- 
est, where  patriotism,  intellect,  and  beauty  paid  homage. 
In  recalling  the  impressions  made  upon  the  public 
through  the  press,  it  is  well  remarked  what  a  full  share 
of  compliments  were  paid  to  Mrs.  Taylor,  and  how  grate- 
ful was  the  task  of  every  one  to  praise  Miss  Betty  for  her 
agreeable  manners,  her  hospitality,  and  her  resemblance 
to  her  father  in  matters  of  good  sense,  and  the  further 
possession  of  all  accomplishments  that  adorn  her  sex. 
But  this  flow  of  visitors,  this  public  ovadon,  this  constant 
bustle  about  Mrs.  Taylor  was  submitted  to  and  borne, 
but  never  received  her  indorsement  and  sympathy. 
Her  heart  was  in  the  possible  enjoyment  of  a  quiet 
household.  She  saw  nothinof  attractive  in  the  surround- 
ings  of  the  White  House.  All  this  "  worldly  glory  "  de- 
feated her  womanly  ambition,  and  her  life-long  dream 
that,  at  some  time  or  another,  "  the  General "  would  be 
relieved  of  his  public  duties,  and  that  together  in  the  re- 
tirement of  their  own  estate,  unnoticed  and  unknown 
except  to  their  friends,  they  might  together  peacefully 
end  their  days ;  and  that  the  realization  of  her  modest 
ambition  was  due  to  her,  for  the  separations  and  wander- 
ings that  had  characterized  all  her  early  married  life. 


BETTY   TAYLOR    BLISS.  445 

General  Taylor  was  by  habit  a  public  servant,  and  his 
future,  as  shaped  by  circumstances,  he  quietly  accepted. 
But  Mrs.  Taylor  opposed  his  being  a  candidate  for  the 
Presidency.  She  spoke  of  it  as  a  thing  to  be  lamented, 
and  declared  when  such  a  position  was  first  fore- 
shadowed, that  the  General's  acquired  habits  would  not 
permit  him  to  live  under  the  constraints  of  metropolitan 
life;  and  to  those  of  her  intimate  friends  who  spoke  of 
his  being  President,  she  sadly  replied,  "  That  it  was  a 
plot  to  deprive  her  of  his  society,  and  shorten  his  life  by 
unnecessary  care  and  responsibility."  With  the  announce- 
ment that  General  Taylor  was  President-elect,  came  his 
resignation  as  an  officer  of  the  army.  It  was  after  all  a 
sad  day  for  him  and  his  family,  when  he  severed  a  con- 
nection that  had  lasted  so  long,  and  had  been  made  so 
memorable  by  a  life  of  conscientious  duty.  Miss  Betly 
now  appeared  on  the  scene  as  an  agent  of  national  inter- 
est. The  White  House  under  Mrs.  Polk  had  been  grave 
and  formal.  There  was  a  cold  respectability  and  correct- 
ness about  it,  that  was  somewhat  oppressive  to  the  citi- 
zens of  Washington  ;  and  there  was  a  degree  of  earnest 
pleasure  created  in  the  public  mind  when  it  was  under- 
stood that  as  a  consequent  of  General  Taylor's  election, 
there  would  preside  over  the  White  House  a  lady  emi- 
nently attractive  in  her  personal  appearance,  young  in 
years,  accomplished  in  mind,  and  made  more  interesting, 
if  possible,  by  being  the  bride  of  Major  Bliss,  who  had 
served  so  faithfully  under  her  father  as  his  accomplished 
Adjutant-General. 


446  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

Elizabeth  Taylor,  third  and  youngest  daughter  of 
President  Taylor,  was  twenty-two  years  of  age,  when,  as 
Mrs.  Bliss,  she  assumed  the  formal  duties  of  Hostess  of 
the  White  House,  her  mother,  from  disinclination,  refus- 
ing to  accept  the  responsibility  of  official  receptions. 
Mrs,  Bliss,  or  Miss  Betty,  as  she  was  popularly  called, 
was  at  this  time  admired  by  all  who  saw  her,  and  had  the 
distinction  of  being  the  youngest  daughter  of  any  chief 
magistrate  who  had  honored  our  Presidential  receptions 
with  her  presence.  Her  face  was  pleasant,  her  smiles 
exceedingly  attractive,  and  her  eyes  beamed  with  intelli- 
gence. She  had  been  throughout  her  life  but  little  with 
her  parents.  When  not  among  her  relations  in  Virginia 
or  Kentucky,  she  was  at  some  boarding  school.  Her 
education  was  completed  at  Philadelphia,  after  which  she 
resided  with  her  parents.  No  inauguration  of  any  of 
the  later  Presidents  was  more  enthusiastically  celebrated 
than  General  Taylor's.  He  was  at  the  time  the  nation's 
idol.  Everything  in  his  history  charmed  the  popular 
mind,  and  the  fact  that  he  was  a  total  stranger  to  W^ash- 
ington — that  his  family  were  unknown,  gave  a  mystery 
and  novelty  to  the  whole  proceeding  quite  different  from 
common  place  precedence. 

For  this  reason,  more  than  ordinary  encouragement 
was  given  to  the  celebration  of  the  occasion  by  a  grand 
ball.  A  wooden  building  of  enormous  size  was  erected, 
which  at  the  time  was  considered  an  "immense  affair." 
It  was  tastefully  decorated  with  flags  and  other  proper 
insignia ;   in  the  enthusiasm  of  the  hour,  many  articles 


INAUGURATION    BALL.  447 

were  loaned  for  its  decorations  by  citizens,  who  ordi- 
narily took  no  interest  in  these  "stated  occasions."  The 
best  music  that  could  be  obtained  was  in  attendance, 
and  to  give  the  crowning  zest,  "Miss  Betty"  was  to  be 
present.  The  Lady  of  the  Mansion  for  the  next  four 
years,  young,  handsome,  and  hopeful,  was  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  admiring  public. 

There  was  the  usual  crowd  and  the  characteristic  con- 
fusion ;  but  nevertheless  there  pervaded  the  multitude 
an  intense  desire  to  behold  the  new  occupant  of  the 
White  House.  There  was  a  "  Hero  President."  There 
was  a  charming  young  bride,  a  young  and  graceful  lady 
to  do  the  honors  of  the  public  receptions.  "At  eleven 
o'clock,  General  Taylor  entered,  leaning  on  the  arms  of 
Major  Seaton  and  Speaker  Winthrop."  His  fine  eye 
was  bright,  his  step  was  elastic,  he  was  brave,  he  was  a 
conqueror,  he  was  President,  and  the  gentlemen  ex- 
pressed their  feelings  in  spontaneous  cheers,  while  ladies 
waved  their  handkerchiefs  and  many  wept  for  sympathy. 
A  silence  ensued,  a  movement  at  the  head  of  the  room 
indicated  that  a  new  scene  was  to  be  enacted.  The  throng 
pressed  back,  and  Mrs.  Bodisco,  then  the  young  and 
handsome  wife  of  the  Russian  Minister,  enveloped  in  a 
cloud  of  crimson  satin  and  glistening  with  diamonds, 
supported  by  two  ambassadors  emblazoned  in  gold  lace 
and  orders,  came  forward — just  behind  were  two  "  Lou- 
isiana beauties,"  a  blonde  and  a  brunette,  whose  brilliant 
charms  subsequently  divided  the  gentlemen  in  perplex- 
ity as  to  wdiich  should  be  acceded  the  palm  of  the  belle 


448  MARGARET   TAYLOR. 

of  the  evening-.  "Which  is  Miss  Betty?"  whispered  the 
throng  as  these  queenly  creatures,  by  their  native 
charms,  without  the  aid  of  dress,  echpsed  the  more  glow- 
ing splendor  of  the  Russian  court.  Then  behind  these 
came  "Miss  Betty,"  plainly  dressed  in  white,  a  simple 
flower  in  her  hair,  timid  and  faltering,  yet  with  an  ex- 
pression in  her  eye  that  showed  she  was  Zachary  Tay- 
lor's favorite  child.  The  expectations  of  the  vast  crowd 
were  for  the  moment  realized,  and  then  followed  expres- 
sions of  enthusiasm  that  were  overwhelming. 

The  reaction  that  followed  the  inauguration  in  Wash- 
ington was,  as  usual,  intense.  The  season  was  moie 
than  usually  warm,  and  the  Congress  fled  from  the  Cap- 
ital. Mrs.  Taylor  was  never  visible  in  the  reception 
room  ;  she  received  her  visitors  in  her  private  aparf:- 
ments,  and  escaped  all  observation  from  choice.  Once 
established  in  her  new  home,  she  selected  such  rooms 
as  suited  her  ideas  of  housekeeping,  and,  as  far  as  was 
possible,  resumed  the  routine  that  characterized  her  life 
at  Baton  Rouge.  As  was  her  merit,  she  attended  per- 
sonally to  so  much  of  it  as  affected  the  personal  com- 
forts of  the  General,  and  it  was  not  long  before  the 
"opposition"  found  fault  with  her  simple  habits,  and 
attempted,  but  without  eflect,  to  lessen  the  public  esteem 
felt  for  General  Taylor,  by  indulging  in  offensive  per- 
sonalities. 

General  Taylor  was,  from  principle  and  choice,  an 
abstemious  man.  On  the  sixth  of  July,  the  dullness  of 
Washington  was  enlivened  by  the  presence  of  Father 


VISIT   OF    FATHER    MATHEW.  449 

Mathew,  the  Apostle  of  Temperance.  To  know  him, 
General  Taylor  invited  him  to  the  White  House.  The 
press  discussed  this  honorable  notice  of  the  great  philan- 
thropist, and  spoke  of  "  Miss  Betty  "  as  presiding  at  the 
reception  with  unusual  grace  and  affability. 

The  winter  following  opened  officially  and  fashionably 
with  the  commencement  of  Congress.  There  were  then 
in  the  Senate,  Clay,  Webster,  Calhoun,  Benton,  Cass, 
and  lesser  but  still  shining  lights.  Mr.  Fillmore  pre- 
sided over  the  body  with  dignity,  and  such  an  array  of 
talent  and  statesmanship  divided  the  public  mind  with 
the  claims  of  the  White  House. 

Few  official  receptions  were  given.  The  excitement 
attending  the  admission  of  California — the  fiery  elo- 
quence of  Mr.  Clay — the  attack  of  Mr.  Calhoun  o; 
Mr.  Benton,  and  the  growls  of  disappointed  office 
seekers,  divided  the  current  that  might  have  otherwise 
flowed  on  to  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  it  is  apparent 
that  this  created  no  regrets  in  the  minds  of  the  ladies 
of  the  President's  House.  It  was  soon  understood  that 
set,  formal,  and  official  dinners  were  not  coveted,  and 
they  were  not  encouraged.  But  social  and  unceremo- 
nious visits  prevailed  beyond  any  precedent,  and  Miss 
Betty  was  always  read)^  to  dispense  the  honors  of  her 
exalted  position,  with  a  grace  and  frankness  that  was 
constantly  securing  for  her  a  wide  circle  of  admiring 
friends.  Thus  the  first  winter  of  General  Taylor's  term 
passed  away. 

To  those  who  were  familiar  with  the  actual  life  of  the 
29 


450  MARGARET    TAYLOR. 

White  House,  it  was  apparent  that  a  change  had  gradu- 
ally taken  place  in  the  feelings  of  the  female  inmates. 
Mrs.  Taylor  had  gradually  abandoned  much  of  her  per- 
sonal superintendence  of  domestic  matters,  and  Miss 
Betty  had  assumed  the  manner  of  one  who  began  to 
appreciate  the  importance  of  her  social  elevation.  The 
embarrassments  that  General  Taylor  suffered  from  the 
betrayal  of  "  false  friends"  had  the  double  effect,  to  make 
the  members  of  his  famil\-  more  devoted  to  each  other, 
and  at  the  same  time  created  a  resolve  to  more  osten- 
tatiously perform  the  duties  of  their  high  social  position. 
A  revolution,  political  and  social,  had  been  resolved 
upon  without  the  parties  interested  being  aware  of  the 
change.  This  new  era  was  inaugurated  by  the  ladies 
of  the  President's  House  having  a  reception  on  the  4th 
of  March,  1850,  in  honor  of  the  inauguration.  The 
affair  was  of  singular  brilliancy.  It  was  remarked  at  the 
time  that  the  ladies  never  appeared  to  better  advantage; 
the  rustling  of  costly  dresses  and  the  display  of  diamonds 
were  paramount,  while  the  gentlemen,  for  the  time  being, 
eschewing  the  license  of  Republican  institutions,  accepted 
the  laws  of  good  society,  and  appeared  In  dress  coats  and 
white  kid  gloves.  General  Taylor  surprised  his  friends 
by  the  courtliness  and  dignity  of  his  manner.  Some  of 
his  soldiers  who  saw  him  in  his  battles  said  there  was 
mischief  in  his  eye.  He  was  evidently  attempting  a  new 
role,  and  doing  it  with  success. 

Miss  Betty,  as  hostess,  was  entirely  at  her  ease,  and 
made  the   ladies  by  her  affability  feel  at  home   in   the 


"MISS    PETTY      AS    A    POLITICIAN.  45 1 

National  Mansion.  For  the  first  time,  at  the  pubHc  re- 
ceptions, she  led  off  in  conversation,  and  her  remarks 
were  full  of  quiet  humor  and  good  sense.  The  following 
day,  the  papers  expressed  their  admiration  in  different 
ways.  "  Miss  Betty"  was  complimented  with  the  remark 
that,  in  manner  and  grace  at  a  public  reception,  Victoria 
could  not  surpass  her.  General  Taylor,  it  was  said, 
*'  had  at  last  determined  to  open  the  campaign  for  the 
second  term,  and  those  about  him,  who  were  intrio-uinp' 
for  the  succession  for  others  than  for  himself,  would 
have  to  stand  aside."  These  suspicions  were  justified 
by  constantly  repeated  rumors  that  Cabinet  changes 
would  be  made  that  would  entirely  change  the  character 
of  the  oreneral  Administration.  Mr.  Webster  becran  now 
to  visit  the  White  House,  and  was  treated  with  marked 
consideration  by  its  female  inmates.  The  influence  of 
the  ladies  of  the  White  House  beean  to  be  felt  in 
political  circles,  and  what  had  been  for  die  preceding 
year  a  negative,  now  became  a  positive  power.  Gen- 
tlemen who  had  distinguished  themselves  for  the  early 
advocacy  of  General  Taylor's  election,  but  who  had  re- 
ceived no  recognition,  were  now  welcomed  to  the  White 
House.  It  was  evident  that  a  radical  chansfe  had  come 
over  its  inmates.  General  Taylor  seemed  at  last  to 
begin  to  understand  his  duties,  and  knowing  them,  he 
commenced  their  performance  with  the  same  zeal  and 
determination  that  marked  his  military  career.  Four 
months  of  spring  and  summer  passed  away.  The 
seventy-fourth  anniversary  of  our  national   Fourth  of 


45-  MARGARET    TAYLOR. 

July  was  approaching-.  It  was  decided  diat  die  event 
should  be  celebrated  by  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone 
of  the  Washington  Monument.  General  Taylor  ac- 
cepted the  invitation  to  be  present  without  hesitation, 
and  surprised  his  friends  at  the  pleasure  he  evinced  at 
the  opportunity. 

The  day  was  unusually  warm  and  oppressive  for 
Washington  City.  The  procession  out  to  the  banks  of 
the  Potomac  moved  slowly,  and  General  Taylor  suffered 
with  the  intense  heat.  Upon  taking  his  seat  upon  th(; 
stand,  he  remarked  that  he  had  never  before  experi- 
enced such  unpleasant  sensations  from  the  sun,  much  as 
he  had  borne  its  unshielded  rays  in  the  swamps  of  Florida 
and  Mexico.  General  Foote  was  the  official  orator,  and 
Washington  Parke  Custis  took  part  in  the  proceec,- 
ings.  It  was  noticed  that  General  Foote  addressed 
to  General  Taylor  many  of  his  most  pointed  remarks  in 
praise  of  Washington.  The  papers  of  the  day  said  that 
"  when  the  orator  quoted  from  a  letter  of  Hamilton  to 
Washington,  protesting  against  his  refusing  to  serve  a 
second  term.  President  Taylor,  who  sat  on  the  left  o{  the 
orator,  roused  from  his  listless  attitude,  as  if  desirous  of 
catching  every  word."  "  Perhaps,"  added  a  reporter, 
"General  Taylor  was  thinking  w^hat  would  be  his  conduct 
in  a  similar  emergency." 

F'rom  the  celebration  the  President  returned  to  the 
White  House,  and  to  relieve  himself  from  the  terrible 
thirst  the  heat  had  occasioned,  in  accordance  with  his 
primitive  tastes,    he   partook   freely   of  cold   water  and 


ILLNESS   OF    PRESIDENT   TAYLOR.  453 

fruit  In  less  than  an  hour  he  was  seized  with  symp- 
toms of  a  fearful  sickness.  The  announcement  that  the 
President  was  prostrated  by  indisposition,  struck  the 
people  of  Washington  with  prophetic  terror,  for  the 
news  went  from  house  to  house,  as  if  presaging  the 
fatal  result.  General  Taylor,  after  the  first  paroxysms 
were  over,  seemed  to  anticipate  that  he  would  never 
recover.  He  yielded  to  the  solicitations  of  his  physi- 
cians, and  the  efforts  ot  his  afflicted  family  to  assist  him. 
On  the  evening  of  the  third  day  of  his  sufferings,  he 
said: 

"  I  should  not  be  surprised  if  this  were  to  termi- 
nate in  death.  I  did  not  expect  to  encounter  what  has 
beset  me  since  my  elevation  to  the  Presidency,  God 
knows,  I  have  endeavored  to  fulfil  what  I  considered 
to  be  an  honest  duty ;  but  I  have  been  mistaken,  my 
motives  have  been  misconstrued,  and  my  feelings 
grossly  betrayed." 

Mrs.  Taylor,  who  heard  these  remarks,  for  the  first 
time  admitted  to  herself  the  possibility  of  her  husband's 
death.  She  then  recalled,  in  the  bitterness  of  her  soul, 
the  remark  she  made  when  it  was  announced  to  her  that 
possibly  General  Taylor  would  be  President: 

"  It  was  a  plot  to  deprive  her  of  his  society  and  shorten 
his  life  by  unnecessary  care  and  responsibility."  This 
was  indeed  about  to  happen,  and  in  the  agony  of  that 
hour  she  prostrated  herself  at  her  husband's  bedside, 
while  her  children  clung  around  her. 

The  sun,  on  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  July,  1850  rose 


454  MARGARET    TAYLOR. 

gloriously  over  the  White  House.  The  President's 
family  and  Colonel  Bliss  had  remained  by  his  bedside 
all  night,  refusing  the  indulgence  of  necessary  repose. 
Each  hour  it  was  evident  that  the  catastrophe  was 
nearer.  Mrs.  Taylor  would  not  believe  that  death  was 
possible.  He  had  escaped  so  many  dangers,  had  been 
through  so  much  exposure,  he  could  not  die  surrounded 
with  so  many  comforts  and  loved  so  intensely  by  his 
family  and  friends.  The  emotions  of  apprehension 
were  so  oppressive,  that  overtaxed  nature  with  Mrs. 
Taylor  found  relief  in  fits  of  insensibility. 

At  thirty-five  minutes  past  ten  p.  m.,  the  President 
called  his  family  about  him,  to  give  them  his  last 
earthly  advice  and  bid  them  his  last  good-by.  No  con- 
ventional education  could  restrain  the  natural  expres- 
sions of  grief  of  the  members  of  this  afflicted  household, 
and  their  heart-rending  cries  of  agony  reached  the 
surrounding  street.  "I  am  about  to  die,"  said  the 
President,  firmly,  "I  expect  the  summons  soon.  I  have 
endeavored  to  discharge  all  my  official  duties  faithfully. 
I  regret  nothing,  but  that  I  am  about  to  leave  my 
friends." 

Mrs.  Taylor  and  family  occupied  the  White  House 
until  the  sad  ceremonies  of  the  funeral  ended  with  the 
removal  of  the  late  President's  remains.  The  bustle 
and  the  pomp  was  now  painful  to  her  sight  and  ears, 
and  she  realized,  in  the  fearful  interval  of  time,  how 
truly  he  was  dead,  who,  though  the  nation's  successful 
General  and  a  President,  was  to  her  only  a  cherished 


DEATH    OF    MARGARET   TAYLOR.  455 

husband.  It  can  easily  be  imagined  that,  as  the  glit- 
tering, heartless  display  of  the  Executive  Mansion  com- 
menced fading  away  from  her  sight,  that  she  must  have 
regretfully  turned  to  the  peaceful  era  of  her  last  home 
.at  Baton  Rouge,  and  the  unpretentious  cottage,  the 
neglected  garden  ;  and  the  simple  life  connected  with 
these  associations,  must  have  appeared  as  a  dream  of 
happiness  when  contrasted  with  the  fearful  year  and  a 
half  of  sad  experiences  in  Washington.  From  the  time 
Mrs.  Taylor  left  the  White  House,  she  never  alluded  to 
her  residence  there,  except  as  connected  with  the  death 
of  her  husband. 

Accompanied  by  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Bliss,  after 
leavinor  Washin^rton,  she  first  souorht  a  home  amono-  her 
relations  in  Kentucky,  but  finding  herself  oppressed 
by  personal  utterances  of  sympathy,  she  retired  to  the 
residence  of  her  only  son,  near  Pascagoula,  Louisiana, 
where,  in  August,  1852,  she  died,  possessed  of  the 
same  Christian  spirit  that  marked  her  conduct  through- 
out her  life.  The  sudden  and  lamented  death  of  Major 
Bliss  soon  followed,  and  without  children  by  her  mar- 
riage "  Miss  Betty  Taylor,"  as  she  must  ever  be  known 
in  history,  studiously  sought  the  retirement  of  private 
life,  and  found  it  in  the  accomplished  circles  of  the 
"old  families  of  Virginia,"  with  so  many  of  whom  she 
was  connected  by  ties  of  blood.  By  a  second  mar- 
riage, her  historical  name  passed  away.  But  when 
the  traditions  and  histories  of  the  White  House  have 
the  romance  of  time   thrown  around  them.   Miss  Betty 


456 


MARGARET   TAYIX)R. 


Taylor  will  De  recalled  to  mind,  and  for  her  will  there 
be  a  sympathy  that  is  associated  with  youth,  for  she 
was  the  youngest  of  the  few  women  of  America  who 
have  a  rig^ht  to  the  title  of  Hostess  of  the  President's 
House. 


I^ir>iS...AJSI(S-AIIL  MlLJLMeiUSc 


XVII. 

ABIGAIL   FILLMORE. 

Abigail  Powers,  the  youngest  child  of  Lemuel 
Powers,  a  prominent  Baptist  clergyman  of  that  day,  was 
born  in  Stillwater,  Saratoga  county,  New  York,  March, 

1798. 

Dr.  Powers  was  of  Massachusetts  descent,  being  one 
of  the  nine  thousand  six  hundred  and  twenty-four  de- 
scendants of  Henry  Leland,  of  Sherburne,  and  a  cousin 
and  life-long  friend  of  the  eccentric  and  talented  John 
Leland.  Though  not  a  wealthy  man,  he  yet  possessed 
a  competence,  and  his  profession  was  the  most  honored 
and  respected  of  all  pursuits. 

Only  a  short  decade  from  the  martyr  memories  of 
New  England,  and  not  entirely  removed  from  the  influ- 
<jnces  of  that  severely  religious  section,  he  was  yet  with- 
out the  sternness  and  rio^or  usual  to  individuals  holdinj^ 
his  high  office. 

He  died  while  yet  his  daughter  was  in  her  infancy, 
leaving  to  the  care  of  a  watchful  mother  lier  education 
and  traininor. 

Soon  afterward,  Mrs.  Powers,  finding  that  her  income 
would  not  justify  her  in  liberality  of  expenditure,  deter- 
mined to  remove  with  her  brodier  and  several  families 
of  relations   and   friends   to   a   frontier  settlement,  and 

(457) 


458  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

thus,  at  the  early  age  of  ten,  we  hnd  our  little  heroine 
established  In  her  new  home  In  Cayuga  county.  Here 
began  the  stern  lessons  which  ultimately  educated  the 
pioneer  child,  and  from  this  point  may  be  dated  the 
foundation  of  her  noble  character,  made  stronof  throusfh 
discipline  and  spiritualized  through  sorrow.  She  was 
studious  and  ambitious,  and  with  her  mother's  assist- 
ance, rapidly  progressed  In  knowledge ;  her  Improve- 
ment must  have  been  very  rapid,  for  at  an  early  age  she 
assumed  the  duties  of  a  teacher,  and  for  many  years 
continued  her  chosen  avocation.  Her  mother,  after  the 
settlement  of  her  father's  estate,  being  greatly  reduced 
in  outward  circumstances,  was  compelled  to  use  the 
most  undevlating  industry  and  economy ;  and  she,  feel- 
ing the  necessity  of  relieving  her  of  the  burden  of  her 
education,  began  to  teach,  during  the  summer  months,  to 
pay  her  winter's  tuitioiL  Thus,  alternating  between 
teaching  and  studying,  between  imparting  and  receiving 
instruction,  she  became  a  thorough  scholar  and  remark- 
able woman.  There  are  circumstances  of  poverty  which 
throw  an  Interest  around  those  Involved  In  them  far 
greater  than  the  noblest  gifts  of  prosperous  fortune 
could  confer.  The  sight  of  a  young,  aspiring  woman 
actuated  by  the  loftiest,  purest  desire  implanted  by  na- 
ture, overcominof  obstacles,  lauehlno-  to  the  winds  the 
remonstrances  of  weak  and  timid  natures,  and  mounting, 
by  patient  toil  and  unceasing  labor,  the  rugged  hill  of 
wisdom — is  calculated  to  dignify  humanity  and  render 
homage  to  God. 


HER  PERSONAL  APPEARANCE.  459 

Man  may  at  once  determine  his  calling  and  assert  his 
place — woman  has  hers  to  seek,  and  however  resolute 
she  may  appear,  with  all  the  dignity  she  may  assume, 
there  are  hours  of  fearful  despondency,  and  moments 
when,  in  the  crowded  avenues  of  trade,  the  craving  for 
solitude  and  aloneness  absorbs  the  energies  of  her  na- 
ture,  and  stills  the  voice  of  ambition.  Yet  the  example 
of  this  young  life  is  proof  that  woman's  dependence  is 
more  the  result  of  custom,  than  the  fiat  of  nature,  and 
the  record  of  her  trials  and  final  success  is  a  testimonial 
of  virtue's  reward,  and  energy's  omnipotence. 

Varied  as  were  the  experiences  of  Miss  Powers'  life, 
they  only  served  to  develop  all  the  latent  strength  of 
her  body  as  well  as  mind  ;  her  singular  embodiment  of 
the  physical  was  not  less  remarkable  than  the  depth  and 
research  of  the  intellectual. 

Commanding  in  person,  for  she  was  five  feet  six 
inches  in  height,  of  exceeding  fairness  of  complexion  and 
delicacy  of  features,  hers  was  a  harmonious  blending  of 
beauty  and  strength.  But  she  did  not  possess  that  mere 
superficial  beauty  which  cannot  retain  if  it  awakens 
admiration.  Hers  was  no  statue-like  perfection  of 
figure,  nor  classically  symmetrical  face.  Genuine  kind- 
liness of  heart  beamed  through  her  light,  expressive 
eyes,  and  her  brow  was  the  throne  of  pure  and  lofty 
inspirations.  Perhaps,  if  any  one  of  her  features  was 
more  universally  admired  than  the  others,  it  was  her 
light  luxuriant  hair,  which  fell  in  flowing  curls  round  her 
finely-shaped  head. 


460  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

Thus  particular  in  describing  her  personal  appear- 
ance, a  circumstance  never  to  be  omitted  in  sketches  of 
women,  we  but  reco^-nize  these  facts — that  the  face  is 
the  mirror  of  the  soul,  and  that  the  law  of  unerring  na- 
ture is,  that  the  exterior  is  symbolical  of  the  inner  being. 

In  the  backwoods  of  New  York  State,  where  the  bor- 
ders of  the  adjoining  county  were  the  limits  of  civiliza- 
tion, accustomed  only  to  the  society  of  the  village  peo- 
ple. Miss  Powers  passed  the  first  twenty-eight  years  of 
her  apparently  uneventful  life,  but  in  reality,  the  in- 
tensity of  her  moral  and  affectional  nature  gave  breadth 
and  depth  to  her  every-day  existence,  and  in  the 
quiet  recesses  of  her  heart  she  lived  life  over  more  than 
once. 

Her  occupation  as  a  teacher  was  continued  after  her 
mother's  second  marriage,  which  occurred  about  this 
time,  and  henceforth  her  home  was  in  the  family  of  a 
much  loved  relation.  It  was  while  in  this  home  that  she 
first  met  Mr.  Fillmore,  then  a  clothier's  apprentice,  and 
during-  the  winter  months  a  teacher  in  the  village 
school. 

His  father's  unwise  choice  of  a  trade  for  his  son  but 
added  to  his  all-absorbing  desire  to  become  a  lawyer. 
But  he  was  not  yet  twenty,  his  time  was  his  parents', 
and  his  poverty  compelled  him  to  serve  out  his  appren- 
ticeship, and,  even  after  he  had  commenced  the  study  of 
law,  to  desire  to  return  to  his  trade. 

The  assistance  of  a  orentleman  who  became  much 
interested   in   tlie  ambitious  youth,  enabled  him  to  buy 


HER    MARRIAGE.  46 1 

his  time  and  devote  himself  to  study.  Thus  he  over- 
came the  adverse  circumstances  which  denied  him  free- 
dom of  action,  and  attained  for  himself  leisure  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  future  usefulness. 

His  subsequent  removal  to  Erie  county  deprived  him 
of  the  society  of  Miss  Powers — his  now  promised  wife, 
and  so  limited  were  his  means,  that  for  three  years  he 
was  unable  to  travel  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  to  see  her. 

In  February,  1826,  they  w^ere  m.arried  at  the  residence 
of  her  brother,  Judge  Powers,  in  Moravia.  Erie  county 
was  as  much  a  wilderness  to  the  young  wife  as  Cayuga 
had  been  years  before,  but  the  obstacles  to  be  overcome 
were  not  considered  by  the  affectionate  couple,  and  they 
started  out  in  their  married  life  buoyed  by  a  confidence 
in  their  own  strength,  and  a  reliance  on  a  higher  power. 

Into  the  small  house  built  by  the  husband's  hands,  the 
wife  carried  all  the  ambition  and  activity  of  other  days, 
and  at  once  resumed  her  avocation  as  a  teuLher,  whilst 
performing  the  duties  of  maid-of-all-work,  housekeeper, 
and  hostess. 

Mr,  Fillmore  w^as  thus  enabled  to  practise  his  profes- 
sion, relieved  of  all  care  and  responsibility  by  his 
thoughtful  wife,  and  so  rapid  was  his  progress  that  in  less 
than  two  years  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  State 
Leetslature. 

Mrs.  Fillmore  rendered  her  husband  most  efficient 
help  in  his  struggle  for  eminence,  and  was  the  wings  by 
which  he  soared  so  high.     Instead  of  clogging  his  foot- 


462  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

Steps  by  her  helplessness,  she,  with  her  intellectual 
strength,  relieved  and  sustained  his  every  effort.  So 
enthusiastic  and  unchaneincr  was  her  attachment  to  him. 
that  no  duty  was  burdensome,  no  privation  sufficient  to 
cloud  her  brow.  The  struggles  those  first  years  with 
poverty  and  increasing  cares  were  trying,  but  her  dig- 
nity never  forsook  her — her  chosen  path  never  became 
distasteful.  Many  are  noble  from  choice,  she  was  so  from 
necessity.  The  greatness  of  soul  and  devotion  to  prin- 
ciole  inherent  in  her  nature  left  no  other  course. 

A  letter  now  old  and  worn,  written  in  her  neat  style, 
has  been  placed  in  my  hands  by  a  member  of  that  happy 
household  in  which  she  resided  so  loner.  It  was  ad- 
dressed  to  one  of  the  sisters,  now  dead,  and  cherished 
by  another  for  the  reminiscences  it  recalls  of  the  beauti- 
ful attachment  which  existed  through  life  between  these 
two  friends. 

"  Aurora,  At(gtist  i-jth,  1826. 

"  Dear  Maria  : — Although  I  have  been  guilty  of 
breaking  my  promise  to  you  of  writing,  and  treated  you 
with  neglect  and  indifference,  still  you  are  dear  and  near 
to  me,  still  you  are  remembered  with  that  affection  which 
one  must  feel  after  being  so  long  an  inmate  with  so  kind 
a  girl,  one  who  has  bestowed  upon  me  so  many  acts  of 
kindness  and  friendship.  No,  Maria,  I  feel  that  I  can 
never  forget  your  family.  My  mind  often  reverts  to  the 
pleasant  hours  I  have  passed  at  your  house.  Many 
friendly  conversations  I  have  had  with  your  mother  after 
the  family  had  retired  to  rest, — but  those  hours  are  gone 


A    FRIENDLY    LETTER.  463 

never  to  return,  yet  the  remembrarK:e  of  them  is  sweet. 
Oh,  that  I  may  again  have  the  pleasure  of  spending 
a  happy  evening  in  your  family  with  the  little  children 
sitting  near  me,  asking  a  thousand  interesting  questions. 
Perhaps  I  may  see  that  time  next  winter — I  hope  so. 

"Would  you  like  to  know  how  I  am  pleased  with  the 
country?  It  does  not  appear  to  me  as  pleasant  as 
Cayuga,  but  perhaps  it  may  in  time.  I  enjoy  myself  as 
well  as  I  expected  to  ;  the  inhabitants,  as  far  as  I  am  ac- 
quainted, appear  friendly.  I  am  not  yet  housekeeping, 
but  am  teachinc:  school.  But  Mr.  Dunnino-  will  aive  all 
these  particulars  more  fully  than  I  can  write  on  this  sheet 
of  paper.  You  will  have  a  pleasant  visit  with  his  sister 
Emily ;  I  think  her  an  amiable  girl. 

"  Maria,  if  you  can  forgive  me  for  not  writing,  I  hope 
you  will  let  me  hear  from  you  by  the  bearer  of  this. 
Write  me  all  the  news.  You  cannot  imagine  how  any 
little  circumstance  concerning  my  friends  interests  me 
when  absent  so  far  from  them.  Ask  Olive  to  write  to 
me  if  she  can  find  leisure.  My  best  respects  to  your 
parents,  and  affectionate  remembrance  to  your  brothers 
and  sisters,  and  believe  me  your  sincere  friend  and 
cousin, 

"Abigail  Fillmore. 

"  Mr.  Fillmore  wished  me  to  present  his  respects  to 
yourself  and  parents. 

"To  Miss  Maria  Fuller." 

In  the  spring  of  1830,  Mrs.  Fillmore  removed  with  her 


464  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

husband  to  Buffalo.  In  the  enjoyment  of  her  children  s 
society,  her  husband's  prosperity,  and  the  pleasure  of 
entertaining  her  friends,  she  found  great  happiness,  and 
as  the  years  passed  by  they  were  noted  only  for  the 
peace  and  contentment  they  brought  her. 

As  her  life  previous  to  this  time  had  been  spent  in 
comparative  seclusion,  so  now  it  was  a  scene  of  gay 
society.  The  social  element  was  very  largely  developed 
in  her  nature,  and  constant  practice  rendered  it  a 
marked  characteristic.  All  the  associations  of  her 
youth  had  been  those  of  the  country,  and  in  its  fresh- 
ness and  beauty,  as  well  as  its  drearier  garb,  she  had 
revelled.  Now,  in  her  city  home  she  was  the  same 
artless,  warm-hearted  woman  of  other  years,  basking  in 
the  brightness  about  her  and  reflecting  upon  others  her 
own  quiet  peace.  Well  balanced  and  self-reliant,  affec- 
tionate and  happy,  there  was  wanting  nothing  to  com- 
plete her  character.  The  domestic  harmony  of  her  life 
can  be  partly  appreciated  from  the  remark  made  by  her 
husband  after  her  death.  "For  twenty-seven  years,  my 
entire  married  life,"  he  said,  "  I  was  always  greeted  with 
a  happy  smile." 

The  result  of  such  unusual  evenness  of  disposition  was 
owing,  in  a  great  measure,  to  the  tender  sympathy  and 
ennobling  affection  of  her  husband,  whose  ambition  was 
gratified  only  when  he  saw  that  she  was  content.  With 
her  there  was  no  variation  or  change,  no  despondency 
or  doubt  as  to  his  success  in  any  avocation  ;  she  hovered 
round  his  pathway,  a  beacon,  and  the  light  never  grew 


■     TRUE    AND    FAITHFUL    IN    ALL    THINGS.  465 

dim.  True  and  faidiful  in  all  diings,  at  all  times,  she 
ever  was;  but  there  was  even  more  of  ceaseless  vio-- 
ilance  than  mere  faith  implies,  where  he  was  concerned. 
To  him- who  shielded  her  in  her  sensitiveness  and  over- 
flowing affectional  nature,  and,  by  his  gentleness  and 
unremitting  watchfulness,  guarded  every  avenue  of  her 
heart  from  sorrow,  she  meted  the  wealth  of  her  love  and 
fondness — and  existed  in  the  sunshine  of  his  presence. 
After  her  husband's  accession  to  the  Presidency,  she 
went  to  the  White  House ;  but  the  recent  death  of  ^ 
sister  kept  her  from  entering  into  the  gayety  of  the  outer 
world.  As  much  as  possible  she  screened  herself  from 
public  observation,  and  left  to  her  daughter  the  duties 
devolving  upon  her.  Her  health  had  become  impaired, 
and  she  rather  shrank  from  the  necessity  of  appearin;];- 
before  the  world  in  the  position  in  which  she  was  mor>^ 
than  competent  to  acquit  herself.  In  such  a  formal  rou- 
tine of  life  she  did  not  delight ;  hers  was  a  confidinjr 
nature,  and  to  her  family  she  always  turned  for  the  hap- 
piness the  world  could  not  give. 

Mr.  Fillmore's  friends  in  New  York,  soon  after  he  be- 
came President,  presented  her  with  a  fine  carriage  and 
a  costly  pair  of  horses.  This  carriage  was  used  by  the 
family  during  their  stay  in  the  White  House.  After  his 
wife's  death,  Mr.  Fillmore  sold  it  and  invested  the  pro- 
ceeds in  a  set  of  plate,  which  he  preferred  to  the  elegant 
equipage  and  horses. 

But  only  by  the  most  exact  details,  by  endless  partic- 
ularities, breathing  out  her  whole  life   and  giving  evi- 
30 


466  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

dence,  by  their  nature,  of  the  depths  from  which  they 
spring  ;  only  by  such  means  is  it  possible,  in  a  degree, 
to  give  some  perception  of  her  remarkable  life — the 
fountain  can  only  be  judged  of  by  the  channel  through 
which  it  flows. 

She  died  at  Willard's  Hotel,  Washington  City,  on  the 
30th  of  March,  1853. 

In  testimony  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the  de- 
ceased, the  public  offices  were  closed,  both  houses  of 
Congress  adjourned,  and  other  marks  of  respect  were 
adopted.  Her  remains  were  conveyed  to  Buffalo,  where, 
on  the  2d  of  April,  they  were  laid  to  rest. 

The  accompanying  letter,  written  by  a  well-known 
lady  of  Buffalo,  who  was  much  of  the  time  an  inmate  of 
thfi  White  House  during  Mrs.  Fillmore's  stay  there,  is 
replete  with  interest,  and  gives  us  an  insight  into  the 
home  life  of  this  noble  woman,  we  could  in  no  other  way 
obtain. 

"  The  great  interest  I  feel  in  your  undertaking  has 
outweighed  my  diffidence  and  decided  me,  in  accordance 
with  your  request,  to  state  briefly  some  of  my  recollec- 
tions of  the  habits  and  social  traits  of  my  late  friend, 
Mrs.  Fillmore,  with  incidents  of  life  at  the  White  House. 

"  The  retiring  modesty  of  manner  so  inseparable  from 
the  idea  of  a  perfect  lady,  w^as  eminently  characteristic 
of  Mrs.  Fillmore.  Although  well  qualified  and,  when 
occasion  required,  ever  ready  to  act  her  part  in  the  posi- 
tion which  Providence  assigned  her,  she  much  preferred 
the  quiet  of  domestic  life.     Her  home  was  pleasant,  and 


RECOLLECTIONS    OF    HER    LIFE.  467 

while  she  was  a  woman  of  strong  common  sense,  her 
tastes  were  highly  refined.  Especially  was  she  fond  of 
music  and  of  flowers.  Her  love  for  the  former  received 
great  gratification  from  her  daughter's  musical  attain- 
ments, and  her  fondness  for  flowers  amounted  to  a  pas- 
sion, and  much  of  her  time  in  her  own  home  was  de- 
voted to  their  culture  and  care. 

"  Mrs.  Fillmore  read  much  and  carefully,  and  being 
possessed  of  excellent  powers  of  observation,  was  conse- 
quently a  well-informed  and  cultivated  woman.  With 
qualities  like  these,  it  is  superfluous  to  say  that,  when 
she  was  called  to  preside  at  the  White  House,  she  did  it 
with  dignity  and  propriety.  She  was  not  strong  in 
health,  and  had  suffered  much  from  a  sprained  ankle, 
from  which  she  never  fully  recovered.  Fortunately  for 
her,  the  etiquette  of  Washington  did  not  require  the 
President  and  his  wife  to  return  visits  or  to  attend  par- 
ties, though  I  believe  the  President  did  sometimes  dine 
with  a  cabinet  minister.  All  the  claims  of  society  were 
met  and  attended  to  by  the  daughter,  and  how  well  she, 
a  young  girl  just  from  school,  acquitted  herself  in  this 
trying  position,  all  will  remember  who  were  fortunate 
enough  to  come  within  the  circle  of  her  happy  influence. 

"  When  Mr.  P'illmore  entered  the  White  House  he 
found  it  entirely  destitute  of  books.  Mrs.  Fillmore  was 
in  the  habit  of  spending  her  leisure  hours  in  reading,  I 
might  almost  say  in  studying.  She  was  accustomed  to 
be  surrounded  with  books  of  reference,  maps,  and  all 
the  other  acquirements  of  a  well-furnished  library,  and 


468  AEIGAIL    FJI.T.MORE. 

she  found  it  difficult  to  content  herself  in  a  house  devoid 
of  such  attractions.  To  meet  this  want,  Mr.  Fillmore 
asked  of  Congress  and  received  an  appropriation,  and 
selected  a  library,  devoting  to  that  purpose  a  large  and 
pleasant  room  in  the  second  story  of  the  house.  Here 
Mrs.  Fillmore  surrounded  herself  with  her  own  little 
home  comforts,  here  her  daughter  had  her  own  piano, 
harp,  and  guitar,  and  here  Mrs.  Fillmore  received  the 
informal  visits  of  the  friends  she  loved,  and  for  her  the 
real  pleasure  and  enjoyments  of  the  White  House  were 
in  this  room.  With  strangers  she  was  dignified,  quier, 
and  rather  reserved;  but  with  her  friends,  she  loved  to 
throw^  aside  all  restraint  and  enjoy  a  good  laugh  and  in- 
dulge in  a  little  vein  of  humor,  which  lay  quietly  hidden 
under  the  calm  exterior. 

"  Mrs.  Fillmore  was  proud  of  her  husband's  success  In 
life,  and  desirous  that  no  reasonable  expectations  of  the 
public  should  be  disappointed.  She  never  absented 
herself  from  the  public  receptions,  dinners,  or  levels 
when  It  was  possible  to  be  present ;  but  her  delicate 
health  frequently  rendered  them  not  only  irksome,  but 
very  painful,  and  she  sometimes  kept  her  bed  all  day  to 
favor  that  weak  ankle,  that  she  might  be  able  to  endure 
the  fatlofue  of  the  two  hours  she  would  be  oblicjed  to 
stand  for  the  Friday  evening  levees. 

"The  President  and  Mrs.  Fillmore  received  on  Tues- 
day mornings,  from  twelve  to  two  o'clock.  The  levees 
were  on  Friday  evenings,  from  eight  till  ten,  and  at  these 
there  was  generally  a  band  of  music,  but  no   dancing. 


RECOLLECTIONS  CONTINUED.  469 

Every  Thursday  evening  there  was  a  large  dinner  party, 
and  frequently  another  on  Saturdays.  Then  there 
were  often  smaller  dinners  in  the  family  dining-room, 
which  were  more  sociable  and  agreeable,  as  the  invita- 
tions were  usually  confined  to  the  personal  friends  of 
the  family. 

"But  what  Mrs.  Fillmore  most  enjoyed  was  to  sur- 
round herself  with  a  choice  selection  of  congenial  friends 
in  her  own  favorite  room — the  library,  where  she  could 
enjoy  the  music  she  so  much  loved,  and  the  conversation 
of  the  cultivated  society  which  Washington  at  that  time 
certainly  afforded.  One  of  these  evenings  I  remember 
with  more  than  ordinary  pleasure,  Mr.  Webster  was 
there,  and  Mr,  Corwin,  and  Mrs.  A.  H.  H.  Stuart,  of 
Virginia,  Judge  Hall  and  his  wife,  and  possibly  some 
other  members  of  the  Cabinet;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Brooks, 
of  New  York,  Miss  Derby,  of  Boston,  then  a  guest  at 
the  White  House,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carroll,  and  several 
others  of  the  distinguished  residents  of  Washin<jton- 
]\Irs.  Brooks'  daughter,  then  quite  too  young  to  appear 
in  general  society,  was  there  by  special  request  of  Mrs. 
Fillmore,  who  so  enjoyed  her  wonderfully  sweet  singing, 
that  she  reHed  upon  her  as  one  of  the  attractions  for 
this  evening.  Miss  Fillmore  played  the  piano  with 
much  skill  and  exquisite  taste.  Indeed,  few  ladies  ex- 
celled her  in  this  accomplishment ;  and  this  evening  she 
was  particularly  successful  in  her  efforts  to  please.  Mrs. 
Brooks  accompanied  her  upon  the  harp,  which  instru- 
ment  she   played   with    much   grace.     Altogether,    the 


470  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

music,  the  conversation,  and   the   company  made   it  an 
occasion  long  and  pleasantly  to  be  remembered. 

"  One  of  the  events  of  Mr,  Fillmore's  first  winter  in 
the  Executive  Mansion  was  a  visit  from  his  father.  It 
was  the  first  time  any  President  had  ever  entertained  his 
father  in  the  White  House,  and  Mrs.  Fillmore  was  very 
anxious  lest  some  unlooked-for  event  might  prevent  this 
anticipated  pleasure.  But  he  arrived  in  safety  one 
Monday  night.  Tuesday  was  reception  day.  The 
morning  papers  announced  that  the  venerable  father  of 
the  President  arrived  in  town  the  eveninor  before.  There 
was  an  unusual  attendance  at  the  reception  that  day, 
and  it  was  interesting  to  watch  each  person,  as  they  cast 
their  eyes  about  the  room,  unable  to  light  upon  any  one 
who  answered  to  their  idea  of  the  '  venerable  father  of 
the  President,'  and  when  they  were  presented  to  him,  as 
he  stood  before  them,  tall  and  perfectly  erect,  and  with 
hair  but  little  whiter  than  the  President's,  there  was  a 
general  expression  of  surprise.  They  had  evidently  ex- 
pected to  see  an  infirm  old  man,  bent  with  years,  and 
leaning  upon  a  cane,  and  Mr.  Nathaniel  Fillmore,  at  the 
age  of  eighty,  did  not  answer  to  that  description.  Sen- 
ators and  Judges,  and  Foreign  Ministers  came  that 
morning,  all  anxious  to  pay  their  respects  to  the  Presi- 
dent's father.  One  gentleman  from  New  York,  desirous 
of  drawing  him  into  conversation,  said  to  him,  '  Mr.  Fill- 
more, you  have  been  so  very  successful  in  bringing  up 
sons,  I  wish  you  would  tell  me  how  to  raise  my  little 
boy.'     '  Cradle  him  in  a  sap-trough,   sir,'  said  the   old 


RECOLLECTIONS    CONTINUED.  47  I 

gentleman,  always  ready  with  an  answer.  That  was  an 
interesting  reception,  to  the  President  and  to  all,  and 
when  it  was  over,  Mr.  Fillmore  the  elder  said  to  me,  '  If 
I  had  had  the  power  to  mark  out  the  path  of  life  for  my 
son,  it  would  never  have  led  to  this  place,  but  I  cannot 
help  feeling  a  kind  of  pride  in  it  now  that  he  is  here.' 

"The  routine  of  life  at  the  White  House  w'hich  came 
under  my  observation,  did  not  vary  materially  from 
week  to  week.  The  social  habits  of  both  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Fillmore  were  simple  and  in  accordance  with  those  of 
well-bred  people  everywhere.  Without  ostentation  or 
arrogance,  they  maintained  the  honor  of  die  high  posi- 
tion they  were  called  to  occupy,  with  quiet  dignity  and 
ease. 

"  I  was  not  in  Washington  the  winter  Mrs.  Fillmore 
died,  and  therefore  know  nothing,  except  from  others,  of 
her  illness  and  death,  but  I  know  that  she  died  lamented 
by  all  who  knew  her  well,  and  leaving  behind  her  many 
pleasant  memories. 

"  Her  death  was  a  terrible  blow  to  her  family,  and  to 
none  more  than  to  her  daughter,  a  young  lady  whose 
beautiful  life  and  sad  death,  following  so  soon  upon  her 
return  to  her  own  home,  made  such  an  indelible  im- 
pression upon  her  friends,  and  for  whom  all  her  native 
city  so  justly  mourned, 

"  The  reverence  her  son  had  for  her  memory  proves 
her  to  have  been  a  devoted  mother,  and  how  tenderly 
Mr.  Fillmore  cherished  that  memory  is  shown  in  the 
sacredness  with  which  he   treasures   every  memento  of 


472  ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

her.  I  have  heard  him  say  that  he  has  carefully  pre- 
served every  line  she  ever  wrote  him,  and  that  he  could 
never  destroy  even  the  little  notes  she  sent  him  on  busi- 
ness to  his  office. 

"  Such  affectionate  regards  from  the  living  speak 
volumes  for  the  dead." 

Lines  on  the  death  of  Mrs.  Millard  Fillmore,  by  Miss 
Matilda  Stuart,  on  the  occasion  of  her  burial  at  Forest 
Lawn,  April  2d,  1853. 

Give  room,  give  room,  a  friend  is  here, 

Slie  comes  to  tarry  with  us  now — 
And  though  no  greeting  on  her  lips. 

No  light  of  gladness  on  her  brow, 
Yet  this  is  home — that  hallowed  place 

Where  she  had  fondly  longed  to  rest. 
Here  were  her  earlier,  fresher  joys. 

Here  was  the  hearth-stone  love  had  blest. 

Though  she  had  moved  'mid  stranger  scenes. 

To  share  the  honor  and  the  strife 
Of  him  whose  life  was  dearer  far 

Than  friend  or  kindred,  home  or  life — 
Though  she  had  tasted  pleasure's  cup. 

While  it  was  sparkling  to  the  fill, 
And  seen  what  few  may  ever  see, 

Hope's  brightest  dreams  grow  brighter  still; 

Yet  there  were  places  in  her  heart 

Where  love  could  rest  and  friendship  live. 
There  was  a  light  within  her  soul 

Which  earth  could  neither  take  nor  give. 
And  there  were  accents  for  her  ear. 

More  winning  than  the  notes  of  fame. 
Where  household  voices  softly  breathed 

The  sweetness  of  a  mother's  name. 


LINES    ON    THE    OCCASION    OF    HER    BURIAL.  47, 

And  when  she  heard  the  other  voice 

That  comes  but  once,  yet  comes  to  all, 
Alike  to  him  who  longs  to  go, 

And  him  who  dreads  to  hear  the  call; 
She  looked  toward  her  brighter  home, 

And  left  life's  garments  frail  and  worn, 
As  calmly  as  she  laid  aside 

The  robes  of  honor  she  had  borne. 

Now  she  has  come  to  sleep  in  peace 

Within  our  grand  old  forest  shades. 
And  fresher  than  the  spring-time  leaves 

Are  those  sweet  memories  that  have  come 
To  steal  the  bitter  tear  away, 

And  bid  us  look,  as  she  had  done. 
Beyond  the  pomp  of  Time's  brief  day. 

Around  her  loved  and*  honored  grave 

The  severed  "  household  band  "  may  come, 
And  seem  to  hear  those  blessed  tones 

That  made  the  music  of  their  home. 
The  faded  form,  the  silent  shroud. 

These,  these  were  all  they  gave  the  tomb; 
She  watches  o'er  them,  while  she  wears 

The  freshness  of  immortal  bloom. 

Note. — President  Fillmore  died  at  his  residence  in  Buffalo,  March  8th,  1874. 


XVIII. 

MARY  ABIGAIL  FILLMORE. 

The  only  daughter  of  President  Fillmore  was,  dur- 
ing her  father's  administration,  in  consequence  of  her 
mother's  ill-health,  the  Lady  of  the  White  House,  and 
as  such  deserves  more  mention  than  the  limits  of  this 
sketch  will  allow.  She  was  remarkable  for  her  mental 
and  intensely  affectional  nature,  and  discovered  during 
her  brief  life  only  those  traits  which  served  to  render 
her  a  source  of  Interest  and  admiration.  As  a  child,  she 
was  precocious ;  latterly  in  life,  her  physical  health  was 
so  entirely  good  that  it  overcame  every  tendency  to  brain 
ascendency. 

She  was  well  fitted,  by  education  and  a  long  residence 
in  Washington,  to  adorn  the  high  station  she  was  destined 
to  fill,  and  acquitted  herself  there,  as  in  every  other  posi- 
tion, with  great  dignity  and  self-possession. 

Her  talents  were  varied,  nor  was  she  a  dull  scholar  at 
anything  she  attempted.  With  the  French,  German, 
and  Spanish  languages,  she  was  thoroughly  conversant; 
so  thorough,  indeed,  was  her  mastery  of  the  former 
that  a  French  professor  declared  her  accent  equal  to 
that  of  his  own  countrymen. 

Her  taste   for  sculpture  was  fostered  by  association 

(474) 


I 


DEATH    OF    MISS    FILLMORE.  475 

with  a  loved  schoolmate,  the  since  renowned  Harriet 
Hosmer. 

Had  her  life  been  spared,  she  would  have  become 
famous  through  the  exercise  of  some  one  of  the  many 
talents  given  her,  but  in  less  than  a  year  after  her 
mother's  death  she,  too,  passed  away.  Her  father  and 
brother  were  left  alone  for  a  few  days,  that  she  might  go 
and  see  her  aged  grandparents.  From  this  journey  she 
did  not  return.  A  messao^e  in  the  nioht-time  roused  her 
parent  from  his  slumber  to  hasten  to  her,  and  though  no 
time  was  lost,  it  was  too  late.  She  was  nearing  the 
golden  gates  of  the  spirit-land,  when  those  two  of  a  once 
happy  band  reached  her  bedside. 

So  full  of  life  and  health  had  she  been  but  a  few  short 
days  before,  and  so  entirely  unconscious  of  any  illness 
of  body,  that  she  anticipated  a  visit  of  great  pleasure ; 
after  her  death,  a  memorandum  of  house-work  to  be 
performed  while  she  was  absent,  was  found  in  her  bas- 
ket, she  expecting  to  be  gone  but  a  few  days. 

The- obituary  notices  are  so  complete  that  I  am  con- 
strained to  quote  them  in  lieu  of  my  own  imperfect 
material,  believing  they  discover  a  more  thorough 
acquaintance  with  the  subject  than  I  can  gather  through 
other  sources. 

"  The  character  of  Miss  Mary  Abigail  Fillmore,  daugh- 
ter of  ex-President  Fillmore,  whose  sudden  death  was 
announced  yesterday,  deserves  a  more  extended  notice. 
Though  young — being  but  twenty-two  years  of  age  on 
the  27th  day  of  March  last — she  was  widely  known. 


47 <5  MARY    ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

"  Being  a  native  of  the  city  of  Buffalo,  most  of  her  life 
had  been  spent  here,  where  she  had  a  numerous  circle 
of  sincere  and  devoted  friends.  From  her  early  child- 
hood she  evinced  great  talent  and  industry,  combined 
with  judgment  and  discretion,  and  softened  by  a  cheerful 
and  affectionate  disposition,  which  made  her  with  all  a 
safe  and  welcome  companion. 

"As  an  only  and  much  beloved  daughter,  her  parents 
were  resolved  to  give  her  an  excellent,  practical  educa- 
tion. As  they  were  unwilling  to  spare  her  from  the 
little  family  circle,  she  received  much  of  her  primary 
education  at  our  excellent  public  schools,  and  the  higher 
branches,  with  the  modern  languages,  music,  drawing, 
and  painting,  were  taught  her  by  private  tutors.  That 
she  might  learn,  away  from  home,  something  of  the 
world  without  imbibinor  its  vices,  and  be  taught  self-reli- 
aJice  under  judicious  restraints,  she  was  sent  for  a  single 
year  to  the  celebrated  select  family  school  of  Mrs.  Sedg- 
wick, in  Lenox,  Massachusetts.  She  left  that  school, 
ffieling  the  necessity  of  an  education  not  merely  of  grace 
and  ornament,  but  which  should,  in  case  of  a  reverse  of 
fortune,  place  her  beyond  that  degrading  and  painful 
feeling  of  dependence  which  so  often  renders  the  life  of 
a  female  in  this  country  one  of  wretchedness  and  misery. 
She  therefore  expressed  a  desire  to  attend  the  State 
Normal  School  and  qualify  herself  to  be  a  teacher.  This 
she  could  not  do  without  assuming  an  obligation  to 
teach.  To  this  requirement  she  readily  submitted  and 
entered  the  school. 


EMPLOYED    AS    A   TEACHER.  477 

"  Graduating  at  the  end  of  six  months  with  the  highest 
honors,  she  was  then  employed  as  a  teacher  in  the 
higher  department  of  one  of  the  pubHc  schools  of  Buf- 
falo for  three  months,  where  she  exhibited  an  aptitude 
and  capacity  for  teaching  that  gave  entire  satisfaction. 
But  the  death  of  General  Taylor  and  the  consequent 
elevation  of  her  father  to  the  Presidency,  compelled  his 
family  to  relinquish  their  residence  here  and  remove  to 
Washington.  This  introduced  her  into  a  new  sphere  of 
action,  but  she  moved  in  it  with  the  same  apparent  ease 
and  orace  that  she  would  have  done  had  she  been  bred 
in  the  midst  of  the  society  of  the  Federal  city.  At  the 
close  of  her  father's  official  term,  she  was  destined  to 
suffer  a  heart-rending  bereavement  in  the  death  of  h^r 
excellent  and  devoted  mother.  She  returned  with  her 
father  and  brother  to  their  desolate  home  in  this  city, 
and  by  her  entire  devotion  to  the  duties  thus  suddenly 
devolved  upon  her,  she  relieved  her  father  from  all 
household  cares,  and  exhibited  those  high  domestic  and 
social  qualities  which  gave  a  grace  and  charm,  as  well  as 
system  and  regularity,  to  the  home  over  which  she  pre- 
sided. She  acrain  called  around  her  the  friends  of  her 
childhood  and  early  youth,  for  no  change  of  fortune  had 
in  the  least  impaired  her  early  attachments — attachments 
which  she  continued  to  cherish  with  unabated  ardor  and 
devotion.  The  home  of  her  bereaved  father  had  once 
more  become  cheerful  and  happy,  for  her  whole  mind 
and  heart  were  given  to  promote  his  happiness  and  that 
of  her  only  brother,  and  they  repaid  her  devotion  with 
the  kindest  and  most  grateful  affection. 


478  MARY    ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

"She  had  some  weeks  since  promised  a  visit  to  her 
grandfather,  at  Aurora,  about  seventeen  miles  from  this 
city.  She  went  from  here  in  the  afternoon  of  Tuesday 
last  in  good  spirits  and  apparent  good  health,  and  she 
reached  Aurora  in  the  evening.  She  appeared  well  and 
cheerful  on  her  arrival,  and  after  conversing  with  her 
grandparents  she  retired  to  rest  about  nine  o'clock. 

"  She  was  soon  after  attacked  with  what  proved  to  be 
the  cholera;  but  unwilling  to  disturb  the  family,  she 
called  no  one  until  after  12,  when  a  physician  was  im- 
mediately sent  for,  but  alas  !  too  late,  A  messenger  was 
dispatched  for  her  father  and  brother,  but  they  only 
arrived  to  see  her  breathe  her  last,  unconscious  of  their 
presence.  She  died  about  1 1  o'clock  on  Wednesday 
morning.  The  effects  of  this  crushing  shock  upon  her 
fond  and  devoted  father  and  her  affectionate  brother 
may  perhaps  be  imagined,  but  cannot  be  described. 

"  Her  remains  were  immediatelv  removed  to  Buffalo 
and  interred  yesterday  in  the  Forest  Lawn  Cemetery 
by  the  side  of  her  mother.  She  was  followed  to  her 
last  resting-place  by  a  numerous  concourse  of  sorrowing 
friends, 

"  In  the  absence  .of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hosmer,  her  pastor, 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Shelton  officiated  in  the  funeral  services." 

The  Late  Miss  Fillmore. 

From  the  Buffalo  Cimmercial  Advertiser,  of  July  22>th,  1854. 

•*  We  yesterday  announced  in  the  usual  terms  the 
death  of  Mary  A.  Fillmore.     The  sad  event  seems  to 


OBITUARY    NOTICE.  479 

demand  some  expression  of  our  esteem  for  her  charac- 
ter, and  of  our  grief  at  the  heavy  loss.  We  would  not, 
indeed,  obtrude  our  consolations  upon  those  hearts, 
broken  by  so  sudden  a  calamity,  whose  sorrows  human 
sympathy  can  only  pity  in  reverent  silence,  nor  do  we 
expect  either  to  soothe  or  express  the  feelings  of  that 
intimate  circle  of  friends  which  her  many  attractions  had 
drawn  around  her.  But  the  contemplation  of  her  vir- 
tues is  a  relief  to  friendship,  and  we  shall  perform  a 
most  useful  duty,  if,  by  a  slight  sketch  of  her  character, 
sincerely  and  simply  draw'n,  others  shall  be  inspired  to 
the  pursuit  of  similar  excellence.  Miss  Fillmore's  char- 
acter was  written  upon  her  face.  It  was  not  beautiful, 
yet  it  was  so  full  of  vivacity  of  intellect,  of  cordiality, 
and  of  goodness,  that  it  attracted  more  than  any  beauty, 
and  as  it  rises  before  us  now  its  expression  only  sug- 
gests the  simple  thought, 

'  "  '  How  good,  how  kind  !     And  she  is  gone.' 

In  that  character  were  mingled,  in  just  proportion,  al- 
most masculine  judgment  and  the  most  feminine  ten- 
derness. Its  leading  feature  was  excellent  common- 
sense,  united  with  great  vivacity  of  temperament,  gen- 
uine sensibility,  arid  real  intellectual  force.  With  a 
keen  sense  of  the  ridiculous,  overflowing  with  wk  and 
humor,  all  her  views  of  life  were  nevertheless  grave 
and  serious,  and  she  saw  clearly  beneath  its  forms  and 
shows  in  what  consists  its  real  happiness,  and  devoted 
herself  to   the   performance  of  its  duties,  with  all  the 


480  MARY    ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

energies  of  a  powerful  will,  and  the  fidelity  of  the 
strictest  conscientiousness.  This  fidelity  to  her  own 
sense  of  duty  had  led  her  most  carefully  to  cultivate 
all  of  her  talents ;  and  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that 
she  was  among  the  most  accomplished  young  women 
we  have  ever  seen  amonor  us. 

"  She  was,  for  her  years,  uncommonly  familiar  with 
English  literature ;  spoke  the  French  language  with 
ease  and  elegance,  was  well  versed  in  Italian,  and  had 
lately  made  great  progress  in  her  German  studies. 
She  had  much  taste  in  drawing,  but  had  mostly  aban- 
doned that  accomplishment  for  music ;  because,  as  she 
said,  the  latter  gave  greater  pleasure  to  her  friends, 
and  she  was  a  skilful  performer  both  upon  the  piano 
and  the  harp.  Shortly  before  her  death,  she  had  be- 
gun to  pay  some  attention  to  sculpture,  and  had  gcit 
her  materials  toofether  for  self-instruction  in  this  hio^h- 
est  branch  of  art.  It  affords  an  instructive  lesson  upon 
the  use  of  time  to  know,  that  she  had  perfected  her- 
self in  all  these  studies  and  accomplishments  since  her 
father's  accession  to  the  Presidency,  and  in  the  leisure 
moments  of  a  life  almost  devoted  to  society.  In 
Washington,  the  etiquette  of  the  place  and  her  moth- 
er's feeble  health  combined  to  devolve  upon  her,  al- 
most unaided,  the  entire  performance  of  the  social 
duties  incident  to  her  father's  station.  She  was  but  a 
young  girl  fresh  from  school ;  but  all  admired  the 
self-possession,  the  tact,  and  the  kindness  with  which 
she  filled  the  position  allotted  to  her;  and  how,  young 


OBITUARY    NOTICE.  48 1 

and  retired  as  she  was,  society  in  her  presence  became 
something  more  genuine  and  hearty,  as  if  ashamed  of 
its  false  mockeries  in  the  Hfjht  of  her  sacracious  mind 
and  honest  heart. 

"  She  was  eminently  social,  and  latterly  her  conver- 
sational powers  were  of  the  first  order.  She  had  read 
much ;  her  advantages  had  been  oreat,  and  she  had 
reaped  their  entire  fruit.  She  was  a  keen  but  kind  ob- 
server of  character,  had  been  familiar  with  men  and 
women  of  very  various  ranks  and  descriptions,  and  she 
would  paint  to  the  life  the  very  interesting  events  which 
she  had  witnessed,  and  the  character  of  the  many 
distinguished  persons  with  whom  her  fortune  had  made 
her  acquainted.  Full  of  information  and  of  spirits, 
more  anxious  always  to  listen  than  to  talk,  yet  never  at 
a  loss,  even  with  the  dullest,  for  something  pleasant 
and  entertaining  to  say,  with  a  countenance  beaming 
with  honesty  and  intellect,  and  with  a  sweet  cordiality 
of  manners  which  invited  at  once  confidence,  affection, 
and  respect.  No  wonder  that  wherever  she  went  she 
became  the  centre  of  a  circle  of  friends  who  loved  her 
most  tenderly,  and  at  the  same  time  looked  up  to  her 
as  one  of  a  stronger  mind  and  heart,  as  a  guide  and 
confidante. 

"  She  was  a  genuine  tender-hearted  woman.  Obser- 
vant of  all  the  forms  of  elegant  life,  yet  with  the  most 
utter  contempt  for  its  mere  fashions ;  kind  and  atten- 
tive to  all,  yet  without  one  point  of  sympathy  with 
merely  worldly  people,  she  loved  her  friends  with  all  the 

31 


482  MARY    ABIGAIL    FILLMORE. 

affection  of  a  strong  and  ardent  nature.  She  never  saw 
or  read  of  a  kind  or  noble  deed  that  her  eyes  did  not 
fill  with  tears. 

"She  clunor  to  her  old  friends  without  regard  to 
their  position  in  life,  and  her  time  and  talents  seemed 
devoted  to  their  happiness ;  she  was  thinking  constantly 
of  some  little  surprise,  some  gift,  some  journey,  some 
pleasure,  by  which  she  could  contribute  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  others.  '  Blessing  she  was,  God  made  her 
so;'  and  with  her  death,  with  many  of  her  friends  is 
dried  up  forever  the  richest  fountain  of  their  happiness. 

"  She  was  reserved  in  the  expression  of  her  religious 
views.  As  is  natural  with  youthful  and  independent 
minds,  she  had  little  comparative  respect  for  creeds  and 
forms,  perhaps  less  than  she  would  have  manifested  in 
maturer  years,  but  her  intimate  friends  knew  that  she 
was  always  governed  by  a  sense  of  religious  duty,  that 
her  relations  to  her  Creator  and  her  Saviour  were  the 
subject  of  her  constant  thought,  and  that  she  trusted  for 
her  future  happiness  to  the  kind  mercies  of  a  benevolent 
Father,  to  the  conscientious  improvement  of  all  her 
talents,  to  a  life  devoted  to  deeds  of  kindness,  and  to  a 
heart  as  pure  and  unspotted  as  a  child's.  At  home — ah! 
that  house,  all  'emptied  of  delight,'  over  which  she  pre- 
sided with  so  much  dignity  and  kindness,  that  forsaken 
parlor  where  all  the  happiness  that  social  life  can  give 
was  wont  to  be  so  freely  and  hospitably  enjoyed;  the 
weeping  servants — those  bleeding  and  broken  hearts — 
let  these  tell  what  she  was  at  home ! 


I 


CONCLUSION    OF    OBITUARY.  483 

"But  she  is  gone  !  and  young  though  she  was,  she  has 
accompHshed  much.  She  has  done  much  to  lay  the 
foundation  in  our  midst  of  a  mode  of  social  life  more 
kind,  genuine,  and  cultivated  than  most  of  what  is  called 
society;  and  she  has  left  behind  her  the  example  of  her 
life,  which,  though  most  private  and  retired,  will  always 
be  a  blessing  to  her  friends,  and  through  them,  we  trust, 
to  a  wider  circle  for  many  coming  years. 

*'  Farewell ! 

"  Forgive  our  tears  for  one  removed. 
Thy  creature  whom  we  found  so  fair, 
We  trust  she  lives  in  Thee,  and  thert 
We  find  her  worthier  to  be  loved." 


XIX. 

JANE    APPLETON   PIERCE. 

There  are  two  classes  of  ladies  of  whom  the  bio 
grapher  is  compelled  to  write,  and  both  are  alike  inter- 
estingf.  One  includes  those  whose  lives  have  been 
passed  in  the  sunshine  of  prosperity  and  allurements  of 
fashionable  society,  who  have  been  widely  known,  and 
who  have  mino-led  with  the  leading  characters  of  this 
country.  The  lives  of  such  women  include  innumerable 
incidents  of  public  and  private  interest,  and  are,  in  fact, 
necessary  to  a  perfect  history  of  their  time.  They  are  a 
part  of  the  great  world  about  them,  and  it  is  as  easy  to 
gather  the  facts  of  their  careers,  as  of  the  great  men 
with  whom  they  have  been  associated  nearly  or  re- 
motely. 

The  other  class  is  composed  of  those  of  whom  the 
w^orld  knows  little ;  whose  perfect  seclusion  even  in  a 
public  position  has  given  but  little  evidence  of  their  abil- 
ities, and  the  world,  with  its  eager  curiosity,  has  been 
but  imperfectly  apprised  of  their  merits.  Such  natures, 
howsoever  cultivated  and  developed,  receive  but  a  small 
portion  of  that  admiration  awarded  to  the  first-men- 
tioned class.  Their  lives  are  known  only  to  the  inmates 
of  their  homes,  and  though  cherished  there  as  a  beautiful 
harmony,  and  their  memory  as  a  holy,  sealed  book,  the 
inquirer  after  facts  and  incidents  is  dismayed  by  the 
(484) 


HER    EARLY    ASSOCIATIONS.  485 

small  amount  of  material  to  be  gathered  from  such  an 
existence.  Such  an  one  was  Jane  Means  Appleton 
Pierce,  who  was  born  at  Hampton,  New  Hampshire, 
March  12th,  1S06.  She  was  but  one  year  of  age  when 
her  father.  Rev.  Jesse  Appleton,  D.  D,,  assumed  the 
presidency  of  Bowdoin  College.  Reared  in  an  atmo- 
sphere of  cultivation  and  refined  Christian  influences, 
the  delicate  child  grew  in  years,  unfolding  rare  mental 
qualifications,  but  fragile  and  drooping  in  health,  devel- 
oping year  by  year  the  most  exquisite  nervous  organiza- 
tion. Naturally  inclined  to  pensive  melancholy — the 
result,  partly,  of  her  physical  condition,  she  was  from  her 
childhood  the  victim  of  intense  sensibilities  and  suffer- 
ing, and  was  during  her  life  the  unfortunate  possessor 
of  an  organism  whose  every  vibration  was  wonderfully 
acute  and  sensitive.  The  world  of  suffering  locked  up 
in  the  hearts  of  such  persons  it  is  impossible  to  estimate; 
but  happier  by  far  is  the  day  of  their  deaths  than  the 
years  of  their  lives.  Blended  with  a  naturally  strong 
mind,  Miss  Appleton  possessed  a  quick  appreciation  of 
the  beautiful,  which  in  the  later  years  of  her  life  was  of 
priceless  value  to  her  own  heart.  Thrown  by  her  mar- 
riage into  the  political  arena,  and  much  in  the  society  of 
public  men  of  note,  she  yet  soared  to  a  higher  theme, 
and,  when  not  incompatible  with  politeness,  discovered 
to  her  company  the  natural  elevation  of  her  nature. 
Politics,  a  theme  most  generally  uninteresting  to  wo- 
man, was  peculiarly  so  to  her,  and  it  was  in  her  presence 
impossible  to  sustain  a  conversation  on  the  subject.     In 


486  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

1834,  at  the  age  of  twenty-eight,  she  was  married  to 
Hon.  Franklin  Pierce,  then  of  Hillsborough,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  lower  house  of  Congress.  The  match  was  a 
pleasing  union  of  kindred  natures,  and  was  a  source  of 
deep  and  lasting  happiness.  The  wealth  and  tenderness 
of  Mr.  Pierce's  nature,  appreciated  to  its  fullest  extent 
by  her,  had  its  reflex  in  the  urbanity  and  courteousness 
with  which  his  conduct  was  ever  characterized  toward 
others.  He  is  spoken  of  in  a  recent  publication  as  the 
most  popular  man,  personally,  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, who  ever  occupied  the  position  he  filled. 

To  a  person  organized  as  was  Mrs.  Pierce,  public 
observation  was  extremely  painful,  and  she  shrank  from 
it  always,  preferring  the  quiet  of  her  New  England  home 
to  the  orlare  and  orHtter  of  fashionable  life  in  Washincrton. 
A  friend  has  said  of  her :  "  How  well  she  filled  her  station 
as  wife,  mother,  daughter,  sister,  and  "friend,  those  only 
can  tell  who  knew  her  in  these  private  relations.  In  this 
quiet  sphere  she  found  her  joy,  and  here  her  gentle  but 
powerful  influence  was  deeply  and  constantly  felt,  through 
wise  counsels  and  delicate  suggestions,  the  purest,  finest 
tastes  and  a  devoted  life." 

"  She  was  not  only  ministered  to,  but  ever  minis'ter- 
mg."  and  there  is  so  much  of  the  spiritual  in  her  life  that 
from  Bulwer  we  gather  a  refrain  most  applicable  to  her. 
"The  cast  of  her  beauty  was  so  dream-like  and  yet  so 
ranging ;  her  temper  was  so  little  mingled  with  the  com- 
mon characteristics  of  women  ;  it  had  so  little  of  caprice, 
so  little  of  vanity,  so  utter  an  absence  of  all  jealousy  and 


DEATH    OF    HER    SECOND    SON.  487 

all  anger ;  it  was  so  made  up  of  tenderness  and  devo- 
tion, and  yet  so  imaginative  and  fairy-like  in  its  fondness, 
that  it  was  difficult  to  bear  only  the  sentiments  of  earth 
for  one  who  had  so  Httle  of  earth's  clay." 

In  1838,  Mr.  Pierce  removed  from  Hillsborough  to 
Concord,  where  he  afterward  continued  to  reside.  Four 
years  later,  he  resigned  his  seat  in  the  Senate  to  practise 
law,  and  thereby  make  provisions  for  the  future.  A 
bereavement,  the  second  of  its  kind,  occurred  two  years 
later  in  the  loss  of  his  second  son,  Frank  Robert. 

When  President  Polk  tendered  Mr.  Pierce  the  posi- 
tion of  Attorney-General,  it  was  the  illness  of  his  wife 
which  drew  from  him  his  reply  declining  it.     He  says : 

"Although  the  early  years  of  my  manhood  were  de- 
voted to  public  life,  it  was  never  really  suited  to  my  taste. 
I  longed,  as  I  am  sure  you  must  often  have  done,  for  the 
quiet  and  independence  that  belong  only  to  the  private 
citizen,  and  now,  at  forty,  I  feel  that  desire  stronger  than 
ever. 

"  Coming  so  unexpectedly  as  this  offer  does,  it  would 
be  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  arrange  the  business  of 
an  extensive  practice,  between  this  and  the  first  of  No- 
vember, in  a  manner  at  all  satisfactory  to  myself,  or  to 
those  who  have  committed  their  interests  to  my  care. 
and  who  rely  on  my  services.  Besides,  you  know  that 
Mrs.  Pierce's  health,  while  at  Washington,  was  very 
delicate.  It  is,  I  fear,  even  more  so  now ;  and  the  re- 
sponsibilities which  the  proposed  change  would  neces- 
sarily impose  upon  her,  ought,  probably,  in    themselves 


488  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

to  constitute  an  insurmountable  objection  to  leaving  our 
quiet  home  for  a  public  station  at  Washington," 

Mrs.  Pierce  was  not  called  upon  to  leave  her  pleasant 
home,  and  for  another  year  she  passed  her  time  in  tran- 
quil happiness,  little  dreaming  that  her  country  would  so 
soon  demand  the  sacrifice  of  him  who  thoueht  not  of 
public  honors  when  she  was  concerned. 

The  declaration  of  war  with  Mexico  found  him  ready 
and  willing  to  serve  the  best  interests  of  his  State  and 
Government,  by  enlisting  as  a  private  soldier  in  a  com- 
pany raised  in  Concord,  He  was  subsequently  appointed 
Colonel,  and  finally  Brigadier-General,  which  position  he 
filled  with  honor  and  distinction.  He  sailed  from  New- 
port, the  27th  of  May,  1847,  and  remained  in  Mexico 
nine  months,  during  which  time  Mrs.  Pierce  and  her  son 
continued  at  their  home  in  Concord.  Her  health  durinof 
his  absence  was  not  more  frail  than  usual,  but  anxiety 
and  suspense,  watching  yet  fearing  to  hear  of  the  absent 
one,  kept  her  from  regaining  or  improving  her  impaired 
constitution,  and  of  renewing  the  slender  chord  by 
which  her  life  was  held. 

The  mother  of  three  children,  none  survived  her,  and 
the  death  of  the  last,  under  circunistances  so  peculiar, 
shattered  the  small  remnant  of  remaining  health,  and  left 
her  mother's  heart  forever  desolate.  On  the  5th  of  Jan- 
uary, previous  to  the  inauguration  of  Mr.  Pierce  as 
President,  an  accident  occurred  on  the  Boston  &  Maine 
Railroad,  which  resulted  in  a  great  calamity ;  among  the 
passengers  were  the  President  elect,  his  wife,  and  only 


VIOLENT    DEATH    OF    HER    LAST    SURVIVING    SON.      489 

son,  a  brig-ht  boy  of  thirteen  years.  The  family  were  on 
their  return  to  Concord  from  Boston,  and  it  was  between 
Andover  and  Lawrence  that  the  axle  of  one  of  the  pas- 
senger-cars broke,  and  the  cars  were  precipitated  down 
a  steep  embankment.  Mr.  Pierce,  sitting  beside  his 
wife,  felt  the  unsteady  movements  of  the  train  and  in- 
stantly divined  the  cause.  Across  the  seat  from  tliem 
sat  their  son,  who  but  a  moment  a^jo  was  amusino-  them 
with  his  conversation.  A  crash,  a  bounding-  motion  as 
the  cars  were  thrown  over  and  over  down  the  hill,  and 
men  beean  to  recover  from  their  frioht  and  assist  in  aid- 
ing  those  injured  in  the  fearful  accidem;.  Mr.  Pierce, 
thoueh  much  bruised,  succeeded  in  extricating-  his  wif^ 
from  the  ruins,  and  bearing  her  to  a  place  of  safety, 
returned  to  hunt  his  boy. 

He  was  soon  found ;  his  young  head  crushed  and 
confined  under  a  beam,  his  little  body  still  in  death. 
Even  now  it  is  a  subject  too  painful  to  dwell  upon. 
What  must  have  been  the  feelinofs  of  those  crrief-stricken 
parents,  in  a  moment  bereft  of  their  all ! 

The  remains  were  conveyed  to  i\ndover  until  ar- 
rangements could  be  made  for  their  removal  to  Con- 
cord. 

Under  such  a  bereavement,  in  feeble  health  and  ex- 
hausted vitality,  came  Mrs.  Pierce  to  the  White  House. 

Through  the  season,  before  her  great  trial  was  sent 
upon  her,  she  had  been  nerving  herself  for  the  unde- 
sired  duties  and  responsibilities  of  her  public  station 
at  Washington  ;   and  with  the  burden   of  that  crushing 


490  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

sorrow  she  went  forward,  with  the  noblest  self-sacrifice, 
to  do  what  was  to  be  done,  as  well  as  to  bear  what  was 
to  be  borne.  That  she  performed  her  task  nobly  and 
sustained  the  dignity  of  her  husband,  the  following  letter 
will  prove. 

.  From  Mr.  J.  H.  Hoover,  who,  during  President  Pierce's 
administration,  was  Marshal  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
the  followino-  facts  were  received : 

"  My  Dear  Madam  :  I  learn  that  Prof.  Aiken's  notice 
of  Mrs.  Pierce,  that  appeared  in  the  Observer,  has  been 
sent  to  you,  and  I  presume  it  does  not  contain  informa- 
tion on  all  the  points  you  desired  to  reach  particularly. 
Hence  this  note.     The  idea  has  somehow  o-one  out  that 

o 

Mrs.  Pierce  did  not  participate  in  the  receptions  and 
entertainments  at  the  White  House.  Mr.  Gobright,  in 
his  book  recently  published,  '  Recollections  of  Men  and 
Thinors  at  Washington,'  makes  the  statement  that  Mrs. 
Pierce  did  not,  until  the  close  of  the  administration  of 
President  Pierce,  appear  at  the  receptions.  This  is  an 
inexcusable  blunder,  for  Mr.  Gobright  was  here  on  the 
spot,  and  should  have  known  better.  The  fact  is,  Mrs. 
Pierce  seldom  omitted  attendance  upon  the  public  re- 
ceptions of  the  President.  She  was  punctually  present 
also  at  her  own  Friday  receptions,  although  at  times 
suffering  greatly.  Often  in  the  evening  of  the  Presi- 
dent's levee,  she  would  allow  herself  to  be  conducted 
into  the  Blue  Room,  and  there  remain  all  the  evening 
receiving,  with  that  quiet  ease  and  dignity  that  charac- 


HOSTESS    OF   THE    EXECUTIVE    MANSION.  49 1 

terized  her  always:  a  duty  which  few  ladies,  indeed, 
would  have  had  the  courage  to  perform  in  her  then 
delicate  state  of  health.  She  presided,  too,  with  the 
President  at  the  State  dinners,  as  well  as  those  of  a 
more  social  character,  and  certainly  never  before  or 
since,  was  more  hospitality  dispensed  by  any  occupant 
of  the  White  House.  The  most  agreeable  memories  of 
Mrs.  Pierce  at  the  Presidential  Mansion,  and  such  only, 
are  retained  and  cherished  in  this  city.  The  days  of 
that  period  when  a  quiet  and  dignified  but  hearty  hospi- 
tality signalized  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  the  pro- 
tection of  the  Constitution,  which  diffused  a  :.ense  of  all- 
pervading  security,  were  indeed  the  bright  days  of  the 
Republic.  This  is  the  view  of  our  own  people,  and  who 
are  better  judges  than  they  who  have  seen  so  many 
Administrations  here? 

"  Every  one  knew  and  respected  the  enfeebled  condi- 
tion of  Mrs.  Pierce's  health,  and  felt  that  the  sad  event 
which  happened  only  a  short  time  before  she  came  to 
Washington,  on  that  fatal  railroad  train,  might  have  shat- 
tered a  much  hardier  constitution  than  was  hers,  and  at 
least  have  unfitted  her,  physically  as  well  as  mentally,  to 
discharge  the  duties  of  the  Lady  of  the  White  House. 
Yet  she  suppressed  her  inward  grief  before  the  public 
eye,  and  overcame  her  debility  in  deference  to  what  she 
believed  to  be  her  duty  toward  her  distinguished  hus- 
band's exalted  position.  Those  who  knew  Mrs.  Pierce 
well  at  this  time  eulogized  her  heroism. 

"No  lady  of  the  White  House  left  more  warm  friends 


492  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

in  Washington  among  our  best  people,  and  she  had  not 
a  single  enemy.  What  I  have  written  above,  you  are 
at  Hberty,  madam,  to  use  (if  you  deem  it  worthy)  in 
your  forthcoming  work.  It  has  the  merit  at  least  of 
being  the  testimony  of  '  one  who  knows.'  I  give  it 
in  order  that  the  grievously  wrong  statements  in  Mr. 
Gobright's  work,  concerning  Mrs.  Pierce,  may  be  cor- 
rected, and  the  error  exposed  before  it  passes  into 
history." 

Another  friend  says  of  her:  "It  is  no  disparagement 
to  others  who  have  occupied  her  station  at  the  White 
House,  to  claim  for  her  an  unsurpassed  dignity  and 
grace,  delicacy  and  purity,  in  all  that  pertains  to  public 
life.  There  was  a  home,  a  Christian  home,  quietly  and 
constantly  maintained,  and  very  many  hearts  rejoiced  in 
its  blessings." 

Mrs.  Pierce  was  always  extremely  delicate,  and  was 
reduced  to  a  mere  shadow  after  the  loss  of  her  son.  I 
have  heard  a  gentleman  say,  who  was  a  member  of  Mr. 
Pierce's  family  at  the  time,  that  "it  was  with  the  utmost 
difficulty  she  could  endure  the  fatigue  of  standing  during 
a  reception,  or  sitting  the  tedious  hours  of  a  dinner 
party,"  and  her  courage  must  have  been  all-powerful  to 
have  sustained  her  under  the  most  unconorenial  of  all 
things  to  an  invalid — the  presence  of  comparative,  and 
in  many  cases  entire,  strangers.  Her  pious  scruples 
regarding  the  keeping  of  the  Sabbath  were  a  marked 
attribute  of  her  life.     Each  Sunday  morning  of  her  four 


TOUR   TO    THE    ISLAND    OF    MADEIRA.  493 

years'  stay  in  the  White  House,  she  would  request,  in 
her  gentle,  conciliatory  way,  all  the  attaches  of  the  Man 
sion  to  go  to  church,  and  on  their  return,  would  make 
pleasant  inquiries  of  what  they  had  heard,  etc.  "Many 
a  time,"  remarked  Mr.  Webster,  the  Private  Secretary, 
*'  have  I  gone  from  respect  to  her,  when,  if  left  to  my 
own  choice,  I  should  have  remained  in  the  house."  In 
her  unobtrusive  way,  ever  thoughtful  of  the  happiness 
of  those  about  her.  she  diverted  their  minds  to  the  ele- 
vated and  spiritual,  and  sought,  in  her  own  life,  to  be  a 
guide  for  the  young  with  whom  she  was  thrown.  How 
rare  are  these  exquisite  organizations,  and  how  little  do 
we  know  of  them,  even  though  they  have  lived  in  our 
midst,  and  formed  a  part  of  us !  A  while  they  linger 
here  to  learn  the  way  to  brighter  spheres,  and  when  they 
vanish,  naught  is  left  but  a  memory  fragrant  with  the 
rich  perfume  of  a  beautiful,  unselfish  life. 

In  the  autumn  of  1857,  Mrs.  Pierce,  accompanied  by 
her  husband,  left  the  United  States,  on  the  steamer 
"  Powhatan,"  for  the  island  of  Madeira,  and  passed  six 
months  in  that  delightful  place.  The  following  eighteen 
months  were  spent  in  Portugal,  Spain,  France,  Switzer- 
land, Italy,  Germany,  and  England.  Of  her  appreciation 
of  this  lengthy  sojourn  in  the  most  historic  and  renowned 
countries  of  the  old  world,  we  have  no  evidence  save  in 
the  supposition,  how  one  of  her  fine  nervous  nature  must 
have  enjoyed  the  bygone  splendors  of  vSpain,  the  ever- 
ranging  panorama  of  luxurious  Paris,  and  the  snow-cap- 
ped mountains  of  Italy  and  Switzerland,  of  the  Alps,  of 


494  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

Mont  Blanc,  and  the  tamer  scenery  of  German  towns  and 
cities  !  Would  that  it  were  possible  to  present  even  one 
of  her  letters  to  the  American  public  who  have  ever 
evinced  their  regard  and  admiration  for  Mrs.  Pierce, 
through  the  sympathy  extended  to  her  now  desolate  hus- 
band. But  that  repugnance  to  publicity,  so  characteristic 
in  life,  is  respected  now  by  the  few  of  her  family  who  have 
survived  her,  and  the  painful  recollections  of  what  she 
suffered  are  as  yet  tot>  fresh  in  the  minds  of  her  friends 
to  desire  them  to  be  recalled. 

From  ex-President  Pierce,  who  very  kindly  replied  to 
my  many  inquiries,  the  following  letter  was  received  just 
previous  to  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  8th  of 
October,  1869 : 

"  If  your  attention  has  been  called  to  the  obituary  no- 
tice of  Mrs.  Pierce,  published  in  the  Boston  Recorder,  of 
January  8th,  1864,  and  reproduced  in  the  New  York  Ob- 
server within  two  or  three  weeks  of  that  date,  you  may 
have  been  impressed  with  the  sentences,  *  She  shrank 
with  extreme  sensitiveness  from  public  observation.'  I 
cannot  help  being  influenced  by  that  very  controlling 
trait  of  her  character,  and  this,  I  am  sure,  is  true  of  all 
her  relatives.  Hence,  and  indeed,  in  consulting  our  own 
tastes,  we  were  thoroughly  satisfied  with  the  sketch  from 
the  hand  of  one  who  knew  her  intimately,  from  his  early 
manhood,  and  loved  her  well. 

"  Mrs.  Pierce's  life,  as  far  as  she  could  make  it  so,  was 
one  of  retirement.  She  very  rarely  participated  in  gay 
amusements,  and  never  enjoyed  what  is  sometimes  called 


DIED    DECEMBER    2,     1 863.  495 

fashionable  society.  Her  natural  endowments  were  of  a 
high  order,  recognized  by  all  persons  with  whom  she 
was,  to  any  considerable  extent,  associated.  She  inher- 
ited a  judgment  singularly  clear  and  correct,  and  a  taste 
almost  unerring.  She  was  carefully  and  thoroughly  edu- 
cated, and  moved  all  her  life,  prior  to  her  marriage,  very 
quietly  in  a  circle  of  relatives  and  intimate  friends  of  rare 
culture  ^nd  refinement." 

!{•  Sfi  3f*  H*  ^  •!* 

On  the  2d  of  December,  1863,  at  Andover,  Massachu- 
setts, she  died.  Many  of  her  kindred  and  all  her  children 
had  gone  before  her,  and  she  was  ready  to  join  them. 
But  she  was  patient,  and  had  "learned  to  wait,  with 
growing  confidence  and  love,  for  the  revealing  of  her 
Heavenly  Father's  will."  Among  her  last  words  was  the 
familiar  line, 

"  Other  refuo;e  have  I  none," 

repeated  with  all  the  emphasis  of  which  she  was  then 
capable.     Now  she  has  reached  that  refuge. 

On  the  5th  of  December,  she  was  buried  by  the  side 
of  her  children  in  the  cemetery  at  Concord,  New  Hamp- 
shire. 

Those  who  knew  her  will  be  glad,  glad  just  in  propor- 
tion to  the  intimacy  of  their  acquaintance  with  her,  to  be 
reminded  of  the  qualities  in  which  they  found  so  much 
delight.  To  others  who  have  only  known  of  her,  and 
that  mainly  in  connection  with  her  sorrows,  it  will  be  just 
to  present  very  briefly  other  aspects  of  her  life.     Her 


496  JANE    APPLETON    PIERCE. 

fine  natural  endowments  were  developed  by  a  careful 
and  generous  culture,  not  merely  under  the  forms  of 
education,  but  through  the  agency  of  all  the  examples 
and  influences  of  her  early  home  and  the  circle  of  related 
families.  No  one  knew  better  how  to  make  tributary  all 
the  experience  of  life.  All  her  instincts  and  choices 
drew  her  toward,  and  attracted  toward  her,  whatever  was 
refinine  and  elevatinof.  Her  tastes  were  of  exceedinsf 
delicacy  and  purity.  Her  eye  appreciated,  in  a  remark- 
able degree,  whatever  was  beautiful  in  nature  and  art. 
During  the  last  years  of  her  invalid  life,  she  found  not 
merely  physical  relief,  but  the  deepest  gratification  in 
foreiorn  travel,  and  in  residence  near  our  own  New  Ensf- 
land  mountains  and  sea-shore.  This  contact  with  na- 
ture's freshness  and  variety  and  beauty,  often  renewed 
her  strength  when  the  ministries  of  human  affection  and 
skill  were  alike  powerless. 

The  following  touching  tribute  was  written  by  a  friend 
whose  affection  for  Mrs.  Pierce  knows  no  change.  He 
sent  it  carefully  wrapped  in  many  covers  to  protect  it. 
Oft  used  and  much  worn  as  it  is,  he  prizes  the  paper, 
from  the  associations  clustered  with  its  appearance,  and 
the  circumstances  under  which  it  was  written.  Its  beauty 
is  its  truth  and  simplicity. 

"The  distinctions  of  earth  fade  away  in  the  presence 
of  death  ;  but  the  memory  of  departed  excellence  comes 
forth  fresh  and  perennial  from  the  very  portals  of  the 
grave. 

"  To-day  this  paper  records  the  lamented  decease  of 


A   TRIBUTE    TO    HER    MEMORY.  497 

one  who  has  filled  the  hlofhest  station  in  the  land  with 
dignity  and  propriety  unsurpassed,  and  who  has  adorned 
private  life  with  every  estimable  quality  which  could 
become  a  true  Christian  gentlewoman. 

"The  many  who  have  esteemed  and  respected  her 
throughout  life  will  deeply  deplore  her  loss,  and  will  sin- 
cerely sympathize  with  him  who  has  been  thus  called  to 
submit  to  one  of  the  severest  of  human  afflictions. 

"  His  beloved  companion   has  passed  through  great 

sufferings,  bearing  always  with  him  the  memory  of  a 

great  grief;  and  she  has  doubtless  gone  to  that  rest 

which  we  know  '  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God.'  " 
32 


XX. 

HARRIET    LANE. 

The  name  of  Harriet  Lane  is  so  nearly  associated 
with  the  latest  and  most  illustrious  years  of  her  uncle, 
James  Buchanan,  that  it  is  quite  impossible  to  write  a  life 
of  the  one  in  which  the  other  shall  not  fill  some  space. 
Of  all  his  kindred  she  was  the  closest  to  him.  Given  to 
his  care  when  she  was  scarcely  past  infancy,  she  took 
the  place  of  a  child  in  his  lonely  heart,  and  when  she 
reached  womanhood  she  repaid  his  affection  by  mlnls- 
terinor  -with  rare  tact  and  crrace,  abroad  and  at  home,  in 
public  life  and  in  private,  over  a  household  which  would 
otherwise  have  been  the  cheerless  abode  of  an  old 
bachelor.  The  sketch  of  her  history  which  we  propose 
to  give  will,  therefore,  necessarily  involve  many  recol- 
lections of  the  great  ex-President,  with  whom  her  name 
is  inseparably  associated. 

Harriet  Lane  is   of  Pennsylvania  blood,  of  English 

ancestry  on  the  side  of  her  father,  and  Scotch-Irish  on 

that  of  her  mother.     Her  grandfather,  James  Buchanan, 

emigrated  to  America  from  the  north  of  Ireland,  in  the 

year   1783,  and  settled  near  Mercersburg,  in  Franklin 

county,  Pennsylvania.       In   the  year   1788,   he  married 

Elizabeth  Speer,  the  daughter  of  a  substantial  farmer,  a 

woman  of  strong  intellect  and  deep  piety.     The  eldest 

child  of  this  marriage  was  James,  the  late  ex-President. 
(498) 


d^^^^^A^.^ 


EARLIER    YEARS.  499 

He  spoke  uniformly  with  the  deepest  reverence  of  both 
his  father  and  mother,  and  took  dehght  in  ascribing  to 
the  teachinofs  of  that  g-ood  woman  all  the  success  that  he 
had  won  in  this  world, 

Jane  Buchanan,  the  next  child  after  James,  his  play- 
mate in  youth,  his  favorite  sister  through  life,  known  as 
the  most  sprightly  and  agreeable  member  of  a  family  all 
gifted,  was  married,  in  the  year  1813,  to  Elliot  T.  Lane, 
a  merchant  largely  engaged  in  the  lucrative  trade  at  that 
time  carried  on  between  the  East  and  the  West,  by  the 
great  highway  that  passed  through  Franklin  county.  In 
this  trade  James  Buchanan  the  elder  had  accumulated 
his  fortune,  and  on  the  marriage  of  his  daughter  Vvith 
Mr.  Lane  much  of  his  business  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  latter. 

Mr.  Lane  was  descended  from  an  old  and  aristocratic 
English  family,  who  had  settled  in  Virginia  during  the 
Revolution,  and  he  was  connected  with  some  of  the  best 
names  of  this  land.  His  business  talents  were  v.cli 
known  and  trusted,  and  all  who  enjoyed  his  acquaint- 
ance testify  to  the  uncommon  amiability  of  his  dispo- 
sition. 

Harriet,  the  youngest  child  of  Elliot  T.  Lane  and  Jane 
Buchanan,  spent  the  first  years  of  her  life  in  the  pictur- 
esque village  of  Mercersburg,  in  the  midst  of  a  society 
distinguished  for  its  intelligence  and  refinement.  She 
inherited  the  vivacity  of  her  mother,  was  a  mischievous 
child,  overflowing  with  health  and  good  humor.  Her 
Uncle  James,  then  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  already  an 


500  ,    HARRIET    LANE. 

illustrious  man,  paid  frequent  visits  to  his  birth-place, 
and  the  impression  which  his  august  presence  and 
charming  talk  made  upon  little  Harriet  was  deep  and 
lastino-.  She  conceived  an  affection  and  reverence  for 
him  which  knew  no  abatement  till  the  hour  of  -his 
death. 

Her  mother  died  when  she  was  but  seven  years  old, 
and  her  father  survived  but  two  years  longer.  She  was 
left  well  provided  with  money,  and  with  a  large  family 
connection,  but  at  his  solicitation  she  accepted  as  a  home 
the  house  of  her  Uncle  James,  and  sought  his  guardian- 
ship in  preference  to  that  of  any  of  her  other  relatives. 

Although  Mr.  Buchanan  was  not  particularly  fond  of 
children,  he  was  attracted  toward  this  frank  and  hand- 
some child  from  her  earliest  infancy.  Her  exuberant 
spirits,  love  of  mischief,  and  wild  pranks  called  forth  from 
him  daily  lectures  and  severe  rebukes,  but  his  acquaint- 
ances all  knew  that  he  was  well  pleased  to  have  been 
singled  out  by  the  noble  and  affectionate  girl  as  her  guide, 
philosopher,  and  friend.  No  doubt  that  even  at  that  early 
age  he  I'ecognlzed  in  her  a  kindred  spirit,  and  his  good 
angel  whispered  to  him  that  the  boisterous  child  who 
sometimes  disturbed  his  studies  and  mimicked  his  best 
friends,  would  one  day  be  to  him  a  fit  adviser  in  diffi- 
culty, a  sympathetic  companion  In  sorrow,  the  light  and 
.,  ornament  of  his  public  life,  and  the  comfort,  at  last,  of 
his  lonely  hearth, 

Mr,  Buchanan  was  reticent  in  speaking  the  praises, 
however  well  deserved,  of  his  near  relatives,  but  he  has 


ANECDOTE    TOLD    OF    HER.  5OI 

been  known,  especially  of  late  years,  to  dwell  with  a 
delight  he  could  not  conceal  upon  the  admirable  quali- 
ties displayed  by  Miss  Lane  in  childhood.  Said  he : 
"She  never  told  a  lie.  She  had  a  soul  above  deceit  or 
fraud.     She  was  too  proud  for  it." 

During  the  earliest  years  of  Miss  Lane's  residence 
with  her  uncle,  in  Lancaster,  she  attended  a  day-school 
there,  and  though  she  evinced  much  more  than  the 
usual  aptitude  for  study,  she  was  chiefly  distinguished 
as  a  fun-loving,  trick-playing  romp,  and  a  wilful  do- 
mestic outlaw. 

There  was  one  anecdote  her  uncle  liked  to  tell  of 
her,  as  an  evidence  of  her  independent  spirit  and  hei' 
kind  heart.  When  she  was  about  eleven  years  old, 
she  was  well  grown  and,  indeed,  mature  looking  for 
her  age.  Unlike  most  young  ladies  at  that  ambitious 
period  of  life,  she  was  entirely  unconscious  of  her  bud- 
ding cliarms,  never  dreaming  that  men  must  pause  to 
■\v^onder  at  and  admire  her,  and  that  her  actions  were 
no  longer  unimportant  as  those  of  a  child.  One  day 
Mr.  Buchanan  was  shocked  upon  beholding  from  his 
window  Miss  Harriet,  with  flushed  cheek  and  hat  awry 
trundling  along,  in  great  haste,  a  wheelbarrow  full  of 
wood.  Upon  his  rushing  out  to  inquire  into  the  cause 
of  such  an  unseemly  and  undignified  proceeding,  she 
answered  in  some  confusion,  that  she  was  just  on  her 
way  to  old  black  Aunt  Tabitha,  with  a  load  of  wood, 
because  it  was  so  cold. 

In    administering    the    reproof    that    followed,    Mr. 


502  HARRIET   LANE. 

Buchanan  took  eood  care  that  she  should  not  see  the 
amused  and  gratified  smile  with  which  he  turned  away 
from  the  generous  culprit. 

About  this  time,  her  uncle  executed  a  threat  which 
he  had  long  held  suspended  over  Harriet.  This  was 
to  place  her  under  the  tender  care  of  a  couple  of  el- 
derly maidens  of  the  place — ladies  famous  for  their 
strict  sense  of  propriety  and  their  mean  domestic  econ- 
omy— just  such  rule  as  our  high-spirited  young  lady 
would  chafe  under.  She  had  never  believed  her  uncle 
to  be  in  earnest  about  the  matter,  and  her  horror  at 
finding  herself  duly  installed  in  this  pious  household, 
under  the  surveillance  of  these  old  damsels,  must  have 
been  comical  enough  to  Mr.  Buchanan,  who  was  never 
blind  to  the  funny  side  of  anything.  He  was  in  the 
Senate  at  the  time,  and  she  was  in  the  habit  of  pour- 
ing out  her  soul  to  him  in  childish  letters  that  com- 
plained of  early  hours,  brown  sugar  in  tea,  restrictions 
in  dress,  stiff  necks,  and  cold  hearts.  The  winter 
passed  slowly  away,  only  solaced  by  the  regular  arrival 
of  fatherly  letters  from  her  uncle,  or  by  an  occasional 
frolic  out  of  doors — to  say  nothing  of  pocketsful  of 
trackers  and  rock-candy,  with  which  the  appetite  of  the 
young  woman  was  appeased,  her  simple  fare  being,  if 
not  scanty,  unsuited  to  the  tastes  of  one  who  had  sat  at 
Mr.  Buchanan's  table. 

The  next  autumn,  when  she  w^as  twelve  years  old, 
she  was  sent  with  her  sister,  a  lovely  girl  but  a  few 
years   Harriet's   senior,    to   a   school    in    Charlestown, 


AT  GEORGETOWN  CONVENT.  503 

Va.  Here  they  remained  three  years.  Harriet  was 
not  a  student,  but  she  knew  her  lessons  because  it  was 
no  trouble  for  her  to  learn  them.  She  was  excessively 
fond  of  music,  and  made  great  progress  in  it.  Her 
vacations  were  spent  with  Mr.  Buchanan  ;  but  the  great 
event  of  those  three  years  was  a  visit  with  him  to  Bed- 
ford Springs.  It  was  a  glorious  time,  which  even  now 
the  woman  of  the  world  looks  back  upon  with  her  own 
bright  smile  of  pleasure. 

She  was  next  sent  to  the  convent  at  Georcjctown — • 
a  school  justly  celebrated  for  the  elegant  women  who 
have  been  educated  there.  Miss  Lane  went  over  to 
Washington  every  month,  and  spent  Saturday  and 
Sunday  with  her  uncle,  then  Secretary  of  State.  These 
visits  were,  of  course,  delightful.  Without  seeing  any 
gay  society,  she  always  met  at  Mr.  Buchanan's  house 
such  men  as  few  young  girls  could  appreciate,  and 
listened  to  such  conversation  as  would  improve  the  taste 
of  any  one. 

Miss  Lane  at  once  became  a  great  favorite  with  the 
sisters,  who  constantly  expressed  the  highest  opinion 
of  her  talents  and  her  principles. 

Before  Mr,  Buchanan  had  decided  to  send  her  to 
the  convent,  he  had  asked,  "Do  you  think  you  would 
become  a  Roman  Catholic?"  She  was  anxious  to  ^o, 
but  she  answered,  "  I  can't  promise ;  I  don't  know 
cnoui^h  about  their  faith."  "Well,"  said  he,  "if  you  arc 
a  good  Catholic,  I  will  be  satisfied." 
*    She  did  not  change  her  religious   opinions,  but  her 


504  HARRIET   LANE. 

intercourse  with  the  good  sisters  has  always  made  her 
respect  the  old  church,  and  has  taught  her  sympathy 
and  charity  for  all  God's  people. 

Here  she  became  very  proficient  in  music,  an  accom- 
plishment which,  unfortunately  for  her  friends,  she  has 
much  neelected,  owinor  to  her  constant  enorag-ements  in 
social  life  and  her  disinclination  for  display  in  her  public 
position.  The  nuns  Avere  anxious  to  have  her  learn  to 
play  upon  the  harp,  not  only  on  account  of  her  musical 
taste,  but  because  of  her  graceful  person  and  exquisite 
hand.  For  some  reason,  however,  she  never  took  les- 
sons upon  that  beautiful  instrument,  so  well  calculated 
to  display  the  charms  of  a  graceful  woman. 

Her  uncle  once  asked  in  a  letter  what  were  her  favorite 
studies.  She  answered,  "  History,  astronomy,  and  espe- 
cially mythology."  Mr.  Buchanan  did  not  forget  this 
avowed  preference,  and  in  after  years  gratified  his 
natural  disposition  to  quiz  those  of  whom  he  was  fond, 
by  appealing  to  his  niece  as  authority  on  mythological 
questions,  in  the  presence  of  company  before  whom  she 
would  have  preferred  to  be  silent. 

Miss  Lane  was  exceedingly  quick  and  bright.  She 
never  applied  her  whole  mind  to  study  except  the  last 
of  the  two  years  she  spent  at  Georgetown.  The  result 
of  that  effort  was  that  she  won  golden  opinions  and 
graduated  with  great  honor.  She  left  the  school,  loved 
and  regretted  by  the  sisters,  with  some  of  whom  she  has 
been  on  terms  of  close  friendship  ever  since.  They 
always  speak  of  her  with  pride,  and  have  followed  her 


PERSONAL    APPEARANCE.  505 

career  with  an  interest  they  seldom  evince  in  anything 
outside  their  sphere  of  seclusion  and  quiet. 

At  this  time,  Miss  Lane's  proportions  were  of  the 
most  perfect  womanliness.  Tall  enough  to  be  command- 
ing, yet  not  high  enough  to  attract  observation — light 
enough  to  be  graceful,  but  so  full  as  to  indicate  the  per- 
fect health  with  which  she  was  blest.  Indeed,  this 
appearance  of  health  was  the  first  impression  produced 
by  Miss  Lane  upon  the  beholder.  It  made  one  feel 
stronger  only  to  watch  her  firm,  quick  step  and  round, 
elastic  form.  Her  clear,  ringing  voice  spoke  of  life. 
The  truthful,  steady  light  of  her  eyes  inspired  one  with 
confidence  in  humanity,  and  the  color  that  came  an<l 
went  in  her  cheek,  set  one's  own  blood  to  a  more  youth  ^ 
ful,  joyous  bound. 

Miss  Lane  was  a  blonde,  her  head  and  features  were 
cast  in  noble  mould,  and  her  form,  when  at  rest,  was 
replete  with  dignified  majesty,  and,  in  motion,  was  in- 
stinct alike  with  power  and  grace.  Hers  was  a  bright, 
good  face  upon  which  none  looked  with  indifference. 
Those  deep  violet  eyes,  with  the  strange  dark  line 
around  them,  could  glance  cold,  stern  rebuke  upon  the 
evil-doer,  and  they  could  kindle,  too,  and  pour  young 
scorn  upon  what  was  small  and  mean.  Yet  of  all  her 
features,  her  mouth  was  the  most  peculiarly  beautiful. 
Although  in  repose  it  was  indicative  of  firmness,  it  was 
capable  of  expressing  infinite  humor  and  perfect  sweet- 
ness. Her  golden  hair  was  arranged  with  simplicity, 
and  in  her  dress  she  always  avoided  superfluous  orna- 
ment.    In  toilet,  speech,  and  manner  she  was  a  lady. 


506  HARRIET    LANE. 

Miss  Lane  was  fond  of  games,  and  invariably  excelled 
at  all  she  ever  attempted.  Her  uncle  secretly  prided 
himself  upon  her  prowess,  and,  in  her  absence,  fre- 
quently spoke  of  this  success  of  hers :  but  he  liked  to 
laugh  at  her  for  being  able  to  "  distance  everybody  else 
in  athletic  sports."  He  used  to  tell  about  her  daring 
some  young  man  to  run  a  race  with  her,  and  then  leaving 
him  far  behind  and  out  of  breath.  Yet  it  was  known  he 
had,  upon  this  occasion,  rebuked  her  for  want  of  that 
dignity  which,  in  his  heart,  he  gladly  owned  she  did  not 
lack. 

At  Wheatland,  Miss  Lane  saw  much  company  from 
a  distance,  her  uncle  constandy  entertaining  his  foreign 
and  political  friends.  Their  conversation  and  her  his- 
toric reading,  directed  by  Mr.  Buchanan,  made  her  a 
most  congenial  companion  for  him. 

She  was  a  good  reader,  her  voice  sweet  and  pure,  and 
her  enunciation  clear  and  distinct.  She  was  in  the  habit 
of  reading  aloud  the  newspapers,  and  afterward  discuss- 
ing with  him  the  news  and  the  political  and  literary 
subjects  of  the  day.  She  took  great  interest  in  the 
grounds,  and  it  was  her  taste  that  suggested  many  of 
the  improvements  made  at  Wheatland. 

The  quiet  of  her  life  here  was  interrupted  by  gay 
visits  to  Philadelphia,  New  York,  Pittsburgh,  Washing- 
ton, and  Virginia.  Wlierever  she  went,  she  left  hosts 
of  friends,  and  never  came  home  without  bringing  with 
her  scores  of  masculine  hearts.  Indeed,  their  former 
owners  often  followed  them  and  the  young  lady,  in  hopes 


VISIT   TO    EUROPE.  507 

of  obtaining  her  hand  in  exchange.  She  remained, 
however,  "  fancy  free,"  until  her  heart  was  touched  by 
the  love-tale  of  Mr.  Johnston,  whom  she  met  at  Bedford 
Springs,  during  the  annual  visit  made  there  by  herself 
and  Mr.  Buchanan. 

Mr.  Johnston  was  a  young  gentleman  of  Baltimore, 
fresh  from  college  honors,  manly,  frank,  and  kind — 
full  of  enthusiasm,  and  as  demonstrative  as  youth  and 
Southern  blood  make  an  earnest  man  when  deeply  in 
love. 

Geranium  leaves  exchanged  in  those  golden  days  of 
youth — withered  surely  in  the  lapse  of  time,  and,  one 
would  fancy,  long  since  cast  aside — are  worn  by  Misf* 
Lane  and  her  husband  in  memory  of  a  dawning  affectiorA 
of  which  neither  could  have  foreseen  the  end. 

Miss  Lane's  brothers  lived  in  Lancaster.  One  of 
them  married  there.  Her  sister  Mary,  who  had  been 
married  to  Mr.  George  W.  Baker,  also  resided  in  Lan- 
caster, and  was  much  with  Harriet  until  her  removal  to 
California.  It  was  during  her  absence,  in  1852,  that  Mr. 
Buchanan  went  as  Minister  to  England,  taking  Miss 
Harriet  Lane  with  him. 

No  more  illustrious  man  than  James  Buchanan  had 
ever  been  sent  to  represent  his  country  at  the  court  of 
the  greatest  empire  of  the  world.  His  fame  as  a  states- 
man had  preceded  him.  To  the  public  men  and  edu- 
cated classes  of  England  his  name  was  familiar,  for  he 
had  been  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  figures  in  the 
Vn'il&d  States  for  the  third  of  the  century.     No  citizen 


508  HARRIET    LANE. 

of  this  country  had  ever  held  so  many  great  stations  as 
he.  His  life  had  been  crowded  with  the  gravest  pubHc 
employments.  Apart  from  his  reputation  as  a  states- 
man, he  had  won  the  highest  encomiums  at  the  bar. 
For  ten  consecutive  years  he  had  sat  in  the  lower  house 
of  Congress.  As  Minister  to  Russia,  he  had  negotiated 
our  first  commercial  treaty  with  that  empire.  In  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  he  had  stood  for  years  in 
the  foremost  rank  of  those  mighty  men  whose  states- 
manship and  eloquence  made  that  body,  thirty  years 
ago,  the  most  dignified  assembly  on  earth.  When  he 
resiofned  his  seat  as  a  Senator,  it  was  to  become  Secre- 
tary  of  State,  and  during  that  period,  when  he  held  that 
position,  he  refused  a  seat  on  the  Supreme  Bench  of  the 
United  States,  urged  upon  him  by  Mr.  Tyler,  and  after- 
ward by  Mr.  Polk.  His  name  had,  for  half  his  life-time, 
been  associated  with  the  Presidency.  When  he  went  to 
England,  it  was  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  Mr.  Pierce, 
who  was  unwilllnQf  to  trust  the  settlement  of  the  fjreat 
questions  then  at  issue  between  the  two  countries,  to 
any  hands  less  able  than  his,  and  it  was  well  believed 
by  many  friends  that,  his  work  abroad  completed,  he 
would  return  to  take  possession  of  the  Executive  Chair. 

In  the  blaze  of  this  reputation,  and  led  by  the  protect- 
ing hand  of  one  so  illustrious,  did  Harriet  Lane  make 
her  entrance  into  English  society. 

And  now  she  became  publicly  identified  with  Mr. 
Buchanan.  At  dinners  and  upon  all  occasions,  she 
ranked,  not  as  niece,  or  even  daughter,  but  as  his  wife. 


AT  THE  COURT  OF  ST.  JAMES.  509 

There  was,  at  first,  some  question  on  this  point,  but  the 
Queen,  upon  whom  the  blooming  beauty  had  made  a 
deep  impression,  soon  decided  that,  and  our  heroine  was 
thenceforward  one  of  the  foremost  ladies  in  the  diplo- 
matic corps  at  St.  James. 

Her  first  appearance  at  a  Drawing-room  was  a  mem- 
orable occasion,  not  only  to  the  young  republican  girl 
herself  and  her  uncle,  but  to  all  who  witnessed  her 
graceful  and  dignified  bearing  at  the  time.  Notwith- 
standing her  youthful  appearance,  it  could  scarcely  be 
credited  that  she,  who  managed  her  train  so  beautifully, 
appeared  so  unconscious  of  the  attention  she  attracted, 
and  diffused  her  smiles  in  such  sweet  and  courtly  man- 
ner, had  never  before  been  in  the  presence  of  royalty. 

That  niofht  when  she  and  Mr.  Buchanan  discussed  the 
events  of  the  day — as  they  habitually  did  before  retiring 
— he  suddenly  turned  about,  saying,  "Well,  a  person 
would  have  supposed  you  were  a  great  beauty,  to  have 
heard  the  way  you  were  talked  of  to-day.  I  was  asked 
if  we  had  many  such  handsome  ladies  in  America.  I 
answered,  'Yes,  and  many  much  handsomer.  She 
would  scarcely  be  remarked  there  for  her  beauty.'  " 

Upon  every  occasion  Miss  Lane  was  most  graciously 
singled  out  by  the  Queen,  and  it  was  well  known  that 
she  was  not  only  an  unusual  favorite  with  her  majesty, 
but  that  she  was  regarded  with  favor  and  admiration  by 
all  the  royal  family.  She  was  so  immediately  and  uni- 
versally popular,  that  she  was  warmly  welcomed  In 
every  circle,   and  added  much  to  the  social  reputation 


5IO  HARRIET    LANE. 

Mr.  Buchanan's  elegant  manners  won  him  everywhere. 
At  her  home  she  was  modest  and  discreet,  as  well  as 
sprightly  and  genial,  and  her  countrymen  never  visited 
their  great  representative  in  England  without  congratu- 
lating themselves  upon  having  there  also  such  a  speci- 
men of  American  womanhood. 

The  limits  of  our  sketch  prevent  us  from  dwelling 
upon  particular  characters,  political,  noble  and  literary, 
with  whom  Miss  Lane  constantly  came  in  contact.  Nor 
have  we  time  to  mention  the  country  houses  of  lord  and 
gentry  where  Mr.  Buchanan  and  herself  were  gladly  re- 
ceived. Suffice  it  to  say  that  her  offers  of  marriage  were 
very  numerous,  and  such  as  would  do  honor  to  any  lady 
of  any  land — men  of  great  name,  of  high  position  and 
immense  fortune,  English  and  American. 

She  always  confided  these  affaires  du  coeitr  to  her 
uncle,  who  gave  his  advice  as  freely  as  it  was  asked. 
But  he  never  attempted  to  influence  her  affections, 
althouirh  one  could  not  have  blamed  him  for  wishincr 
her  to  remain  as  she  was.  She  always  decided  for  her 
uncle,  and  ended  the  consideration  of  each  proposal  by 
trusting  to  the  happiness  she  had  already  tried. 

The  years  that  Miss  Lane  spent  in  England  were 
probably  the  brightest  of  her  life.  She  loved  England, 
English  people,  and  English  habits,  and  fortunate  indeed 
it  was  for  her  that  in  the  days  of  her  early  youth,  when 
just  entering  upon  womanhood,  she  acquired  that  taste 
for  exercise,  early  hours,  wholesome  food,  and  healthy 
livinof,  which  make  the  ladies  of  Great  Britain  the  fairest 
and  most  substantial  beauties  in  the  world. 


CONTINENTAL   TRAVELS.  5  I  I 

One  of  the  incidents  of  her  stay  abroad  with  her  uncle 
was  her  visit  with  him  to  Ostend,  at  the  time  of  the  cele- 
brated conference  between  thcj  American  Ministers  to 
England,  France,  and  Spain.  From  here  she  travelled 
with  Mr.  Mason  and  others  to  Brussels,  Aix-la-Chapelle, 
Coblentz,  and  Frankfort  on  the  Main,  and  thence  joined 
Mr.  Buchanan  and  Mr.  Soule  at  Brussels,  where  the 
business  of  the  Conference  was  completed. 

She  accompanied  Mr.  Mason  on  his  return  to  Paris, 
and  spent  two  months  at  his  house.  It  is  needless  to 
say  that  these  were  happy  months,  for  Mr.  Mason's 
elegant  hospitality,  and  the  agreeable  manners,  and  kind 
hearts  of  wife  and  daughters,  made  his  home  a  thronged 
resort  of  all  Americans  who  visited  the  gay  capital. 
Miss  Lane's  recollections  of  that  noble  man  are  as  warm 
as  those  of  any  of  the  thousands  who  were  familiar  with 
his  virtues,  and  whose  feeling  regarding  him  was  happily 
expressed  after  his  death  in  an  obituary  written  by  a 
near  friend,  who  summed  up  hij  faults  and  his  merits  in 
the  title  taken  from  the  most  genial  character  ever  drawn 
by  Bulwer,  of  "  Old  Gentleman  Waife." 

Among  the  brilliant  circle  that  nightly  assembled 
in  the  saloons  of  Mr.  Mason,  Miss  Lane  reigned  a  pre- 
eminent belle. 

We  must  also  particularly  refer  to  the  enthusiasm 
excited  by  Miss  Lane  upon  a  memorable  occasion  in 
England.  We  mean  the  day  when  Mr.  Buchanan  and 
Mr.  Tennyson  received  the  dc^gree  of  Doctor  of  Civil 
Laws  at  the  University  of  Oxford.    Her  appearance  was 


512  HARRIET    LANE. 

greeted  with  loud  cheers  by  the  students,  and  murmurs 
of  admiration. 

She  returned  to  America,  leaving  Mr.  Buchanan  in 
London,  waiting  for  a  release  from  his  mission,  which 
he  had  long  urged,  but  which  the  State  Department  at 
Washinorton  had  failed  to  srive  him. 

During  this  separation,  her  uncle  wrote  her  long 
letters,  overflowing  with  affection  and  regret  that  he 
had  suffered  her  to  leave  him.  Indeed,  she  would 
never  have  consented  to  absent  herself  from  his  side 
for  an  hour,  had  she  not  been  expecting  a  visit  at 
Wheatland  from  her  sister,  Mrs.  Baker,  whose  sweet 
companionship  she  had  missed  in  all  her  pleasures  and 
triumphs.  It  was  soon  after  her  happy  arrival  at  dear 
old  Wheatland,  with  the  welcome  of  friends  still  in  her 
ears,  and  amid  hurried  and  loving  preparations  for  the 
reception  of  this  beautiful  and  only  sister,  that  the 
dreadful  tidings  of  her  death  on  the  distant  shores  of  the 
Pacific,  smote  on  the  sad  heart  of  Harriet.  In  the  agony 
of  her  first  great  grief,  brooding  over  the  memory  of 
this  twin  soul,  often  did  she  echo  in  feeling  those  verses 
of  Tennyson : 

"Ah  yet,  even  yet,  if  this  might  be, 
I,  falling  on  thy  faithful  heart, 
Would,  breathing  through  thy  lips,  impart 
The  life  that  almost  dies  in  me. 

"That  dies  not,  but  endures  with  pain, 
And  slowly  forms  the  firmer  mind ; 
Treasuring  the  look  it  cannot  find, 
The  words  that  are  not  heard  again." 


DEATH    OF    HER    BROTHER.  5I3 

Under  these  sad  circumstances  Mr.  Buchanan  came 
home,  and  the  news  of  his  nomination  for  the  Presi- 
dency soon  afterward  reached  Wheatland.  Miss  Lane 
heard  it,  not  with  indifference,  but  with  less  enthusiasm 
than  she  had  shown  about  anything  in  which  her  uncle 
was  concerned.  She,  however,  received  his  friends  with  a 
grace  which,  if  sadder  than  of  old,  was  none  the  less  inter- 
estinof ;  and  the  noble  figfure  clad  in  mourningf,and  the  mod- 
est,  tender  face  beneath  her  dark  English  hat,  will  never  be 
forgotten  by  those  who  saw  Harriet  Lane  dispensing  the 
dignified  hospitalities  of  Mr.  Buchanan's  table,  or  calmly 
strolling  over  the  lawn  during  the  summer  of  1856. 

Saddened  by  suffering,  but  sustained  by  her  warm 
affection  for  her  uncle,  she  became  the  mistress  of  the 
White  House.  Her  younger  and  favorite  brother, 
Eskridge,  accompanied  Mr.  Buchanan  and  Miss  Lane 
to  Washington,  and  after  a  few  days'  stay  there  went 
home  to  Lancaster,  promising  his  sister,  who  was  loth  to 
bid  him  good-by,  that  he  would  return  in  about  a  month. 
But  just  a  month  from  that  parting,  the  telegraph  bore 
to  Mr.  Buchanan  the  news  of  his  sudden  death. 

The  President  loved  this  youth  above  all  his  nephews, 
and  had  meant  to  have  him  with  him  at  Washingrton. 
This  was  a  terrible  blow  to  him,  but  in  his  affliction  he 
was  mindful  of  Harriet,  and  it  was  with  the  kindest  care 
he  broke  to  her  the  intelliorence, 

o 

The  sister,  again  and  so  soon  smitten,  with  a  crushed 
heart  set  out  for  the  scene  of  death,  there  to  yearn  over 
the  dear  clay  of  that  lost  brother. 
i3 


514  HARRIET    LANE. 

When  Miss  Lane  returned  to  her  uncle,  it  was  not  to 
parade  her  trouble,  but  quietly  and  cheerfully  to  assist 
him  in  his  social  and  domestic  life;  to  keep  her  grief  for 
her  closet,  and  in  the  endurance  of  it,  to  ask  no  help  but 
God's.  Yet  all  who  saw  her,  subdued  but  dignified,  as 
she  received  familiar  friends  during  those  first  months  in 
Washington,  were  struck  with  the  elegant  repose  of  her 
manners,  her  sweet  thanks  for  sympathy,  and  her  kind 
and  gentle  interest  in  everything  about  her. 

The  next  winter  she  went  to  no  entertainments,  but 
the  usual  dinners  and  receptions  at  home  were  not  omit- 
ted. In  her  new  high  sphere  she  was  as  much,  admired 
as  she  had  always  been,  and  after  she  began  to  partici- 
pate in  the  gayeties  of  that  gayest  administration,  her 
life  was  made  up  of  a  series  of  honors  and  pleasures 
such  as  have  never  fallen  to  the  lot  of  any  other  young 
lady  in  the  United  States. 

On  the  occasion  of  a  New  Year's  reception,  when 
Mr.  Buchanan  stood  up  to  receive  the  ambassadors  of 
the  world's  kingdoms  and  empires,  his  great  frame,  his 
massive  head,  his  noble  countenance,  marked  and 
adorned  by  the  lines  of  thought,  but  untouched  by  the 
wrinkles  of  decay,  made  him  a  spectacle  so  impressive 
and  majestic,  that  it  did  not  require  the  addition  of  his 
courtly  manners  to  elicit  a  thrill  of  pride  in  the  breast  of 
every  American  who  beheld  him. 

It  would  have  been  a  trying  contrast  to  the  beauty 
and  dignity  of  any  pne  to  have  stood  by  his  side ;  yet  it 
was   difficult  for  those  who  saw  Harriet  Lane  there  to 


IN    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  515 

decide  between  the  uncle  and  the  niece — to  say  which 
looked  the  proudest  and  the  greatest — the  man  or  the 
woman,  the  earlier  or  the  later  born. 

Miss  Lane's  position  was  more  onerous  and  more 
crowded  with  social  duties  than  that  of  any  other  person 
who  had  filled  her  place  since  the  days  of  Martha  Wash- 
ington, because  Mr.  Buchanan  received  not  merely  official 
visits  in  the  capacity  of  President,  but  his  wide  acquaint- 
ance at  home  and  abroad  was  the  cause  of  his  constantly 
entertaining,  as  a  private  gentleman,  foreigners  and 
others,  who  came,  not  to  see  Washington  and  the  Presi- 
dent, but  to  visit  Mr.  Buchanan  himself 

Jefferson  Davis,  who,  for  reasons  creditable  to  Mr, 
Buchanan's  course  at  the  outbreak  of  the  secession 
movement,  was  not  friendly  to  him,  speaking  to  Dr. 
Craven  at  Fortress  Monroe,  said:  "The  White  House, 
under  the  administration  of  Buchanan,  approached  more 
nearly  to  my  idea  of  a  Republican  Court  than  the  Presi- 
dent's house  had  ever  done  before  since  the  days  of 
Washington."  In  this  compliment,  extorted  by  truth,  of 
course  Miss  Lane  shared. 

In  the  summer  of  i860,  Queen  Victoria  accepted  the 
invitation  of  the  President  for  the  Prince  of  Wales  to 
extend  his  Canadian  tour  to  this  country.  The  duty  of 
preparing  for  the  Prince's  reception  devolved  upon  Miss 
Lane,  and  so  admirably  did  she  order  the  Executive 
household,  that  a  party  far  less  amiable  than  the  Prince 
and  the  noble  gentlemen  who  accompanied  him,  could 
not   have   failed    to    find    their  visit  an  agreeable  one. 


51  6  HARRIET    LANE. 

Apart  from  the  personal  qualities  of  this  distinguished 
guest  (and  Mr.  Buchanan  always  spoke  with  enthusiasm 
of  the  admirable  qualities  and  excellent  disposition  of 
his  young  friend),  his  visit  was  an  occurrence  of  memo- 
rable interest,  being  the  first  occasion  on  which  an  heir 
apparent  to  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain  had  stood  in  the 
Capital  of  her  lost  colonies.  Especially  did  this  interest 
attach,  when,  standing  uncovered  by  the  side  of  the 
President,  before  the  gateway  of  Washington's  tomb, 
and  gazing  reverently  on  the  sarcophagus  that  holds  his 
ashes,  the  great-grandson  of  George  the  Third  paid  open 
homage  to  the  memory  of  the  chief  who  rent  his  empire 
— when  the  last  born  king  of  William  the  Conqueror's 
blood  bowed  his  knee  before  the  dust  of  the  greatest 
rebel  of  all  time. 

The  modesty  of  the  Prince's  behavior,  and  his  perfectly 
frank  manners  attested  the  excellence  of  the  training 
given  him  by  his  good  mother  and  his  high-souled,  wise, 
and  pious  father.  He  entered  with  all  the  freshness  of 
youth  into  every  innocent  amusement  planned  to  beguile 
the  hours  of  his  stay. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  mention,  as  an  instance  of  Mr. 
Buchanan's  care  for  the  proprieties  of  his  station,  that, 
anxious  as  it  was  possible  for  man  to  be  to  gratify 
the  Prince,  who,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  proposed 
dancing,  approving  of  it  as  a  harmless  pastime,  and  fond 
of  it  as  a  spectacle,  he  yet  declined  to  permit  it  in  the 
White  House,  for  the  reason  that  that  building  was  not 
his  private  home,  that  it  belonged  to  the  nation,  and  that 


LETTER    FROM    QUEEN    VICTORIA.  517 

the  moral  sense  of  many  good  people  who  had  assisted 
to  put  him  there,  would  be  shocked  by  what  they 
regarded  as  profane  gayety  in  the  saloons  of  the  State. 

The  visit  of  the  English  party  lasted  five  days,  and 
they  separated  from  Mr.  Buclianan  and  Miss  Lane 
leavinsf  behind  them  most  aofreeable  recollections. 

On  the  Prince's  arrival  in  England,  the  Queen 
acknowledged  her  sense  of  the  cordiality  of  his  re- 
ception by  the  President,  in  the  following  autograph  let- 
ter, in  which  the  dignity  of  an  official  communication  is 
altogether  lost  in  the  personal  language  of  a  grateful 
mother  thanking^  a  friend  for  kindness  done  her  first- 
born  child.  It  is  the  Queen's  English  employed  to 
express  the  sentiments  of  the  woman : 

"Windsor.  Casti.e,  Nov.  iglk,  i860. 

"  My  Good  Friend  : — Your  letter  of  the  6th  ult.  has 
afforded  me  the  greatest  pleasure,  containing,  as  it  does, 
such  kind  expressions  with  regard  to  my  son,  and 
assuring  me  that  the  character  and  object  of  his  visit  to 
you  and  to  the  United  States  have  been  fully  appreci- 
ated, and  that  his  demeanor  and  the  feelings  evinced  by 
him,  have  secured  to  him  your  esteem  and  the  general 
good-will  of  your  countrymen. 

"  I  purposely  delayed  the  answer  to  your  letter  until  I 
should  be  able  to  couple  with  it  the  announcement  of 
the  Prince  of  Wales'  safe  return  to  his  home.  Contrary 
winds  and  stress  of  weather  have  much  retarded  his 
arrival,  but  we  have  been  fully  compensated  for  the 
anxiety  which  this  long  delay  has  naturally  caused  us, 


5l8  HARRIET    LANE. 

by  finding  him  in  such  excellent  health  and  spirits,  and 
so  delighted  with  all  he  has  seen  and  experienced  in  his 
travels. 

"  He  cannot  sufficiently  praise  the  great  cordiality 
with  which  he  has  been  everywhere  greeted  in  your 
country,  and  the  friendly  manner  in  which  you  have 
received  him  ;  and  whilst,  as  a  mother,  I  am  grateful 
for  the  kindness  shown  him,  I  feel  impelled  to  express, 
at  the  same  time,  how  deeply  I  have  been  touched 
by  the  many  demonstrations  of  affection  personally 
toward  myself  which  his  presence  has  called  forth. 

"  I  fully  reciprocate  toward  your  nation  the  feel- 
ings thus  made  apparent,  and  look  upon  them  as  form- 
ing an  important  link  to  connect  two  nations  of  kin- 
dred orisfin  and  character,  whose  mutual  esteem  and 
friendship  must  always  have  so  material  an  influ- 
ence upon  their  respective  development  and  pros- 
perity. 

"  The  interesting  and  touching  scene  at  the  grave  of 
General  Washington,  to  which  you  allude,  may  be  fitly 
taken  as  the  type  of  our  present  feeling,  and,  I  trust,  of 
our  future  relations. 

"  The  Prince  Consort,  who  heartily  joins  in  the 
expressions  contained  in  this  letter,  wishes  to  be  kindly 
remembered  to  you,  as  we  both  wish  to  be  to  Miss 
Lane. 

"  Believe  me  always 

"  Your  orood  friend, 

"  Victoria  R." 


A    PRESENT    FROM    THE    PRINCE    OF    WALES.  519 

The  Prince  spoke  for  himself  in  the  following  note  : 

"Jaffa,  March  2<)th,  1862. 

"Dear  Mr.  Buchanan: — Permit  me  to  request  that 
you  will  accept  the  accompanying  portrait  as  a  slight 
mark  of  my  grateful  recollection  of  the  hospitable 
reception  and  agreeable  visit  at  the  White  House  on  the 
occasion  of  my  tour  in  the  United  States. 

"  Believe  me,  that  the  cordial  welcome  which  was 
then  vouchsafed  to  me  by  the  American  people,  and 
by  you  as  their  chief,  can  never  be  effaced  from  my 
memory. 

"I  venture  to  ask  you  at  the  same  time  to  remember 
me  kindly  to  Miss  Lane,  and 

"  Believe  me,  dear  Mr.  Buchanan, 

"Yours,  very  truly, 

"Albert  Edward." 

The  portrait  to  which  the  Prince  alludes  in  the  pre- 
ceding letter  was  a  handsome  painting  of  hifnself,  done 
by  Sir  John  Watson  Gordon,  and  sent  to  Mr.  Buchanan, 

The  Prince  also  presented  Miss  Lane  with  a  set  of 
engravings  of  the  Royal  Pamily,  which  are  now  in  her 
possession.  A  newspaper  correspondent,  after  Mr. 
Lincoln's  inauguration,  wrote  that  the  appearance  of  the 
Mansion  was  very  much  changed  by  the  removal  of  the 
portraits,  which  had  been  presented  for  the  White 
House. 

Mr.  Buchanan    could    not   let   so   orave   a  charcfe   re- 


520  HARRIET    LANE. 

main    unanswered,   and    wrote    to    Lord   Lyons,   whose 
letter  is  for  the  first  time  published. 

"Washington,  Dec.  2i,ih,  1861. 

"  Sir  :  I  have  this  morning  had  the  honor  to  receive 
your  letter  of  the  19th  of  this  month,  requesting  me  to 
state  the  facts  connected  with  a  present  made  by  His 
Royal  Highness,  the  Prince  of  Wales,  to  Miss  Lane,  of 
a  set  of  engravings  representing  Her  Majesty,  the 
Queen,  and  other  members  of  the  Royal  Family. 

"The  Prince  of  Wales  told  me,  when  His  Royal 
Highness  was  at  Washington,  that  he  had  asked  Miss 
Lane  to  accept  these  engravings — he  said  that  he  had 
not  them  with  him  there,  but  that  he  would  send  them, 
through  me,  from  Portland.  His  Royal  Highness 
accordingly  sent  them  on  shore  immediately  after  he 
embarked  at  that  place. 

"They  were  marked  with  Miss  Lane's  name,  in  the 
handwriting  of  General  Bruce. 

"  In  obedience  to  the  commands  I  had  received 
from  the  Prince,  I  presented  them  in  his  name,  to  Miss 
Lane.  I  had  the  honor  of  placing  them  myself  in  her 
hand. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  the  greatest  respect, 
Sir, 

"  Your  most  obedient  humble  servant  and  friend, 

"  Lyons. 

"The  Honorable 

"  James  Buchanan,  etc.,  etc.,  etc." 


AGAIN    AT    WHEATLAND.  521 

When  the  secession  movement  was  inaugurated  by 
South  Carolina,  immediately  after  the  election  of  Mr. 
Lincoln,  the  position  of  Mr.  Buchanan  become  one  of 
extreme  delicacy  and  difficulty,  and  in  its  great  cares 
as  well  as  in  its  petty  social  annoyances,  Miss  Lane 
bore  a  heavy  part. 

During  those  last  months  of  his  administration,  when 
Mr.  Buchanan  was  harassed  on  every  side,  when  his 
patriotism  was  doubted,  when  his  hands — eager  to  hold 
steady  the  reins  of  Government — were  tied  fast  by 
the  apathy  of  Congress  and  the  indifference  of  the 
Northern  people,  his  mind  was  lightened  of  much  of 
its  load  of  anxiety  by  the  consciousness  that  his  niece 
faithfully  represented  him  in  his  drawing-room,  and  that 
his  patriotism  and  good  sense  would  never  suffer  by  any 
conversational  lapse  of  hers.  He  always  spoke  with 
warmth  and  gratitude  of  her  admirable  demeanor  at  this 
critical  time. 

And  now  we  see  Miss  Lane  once  more  at  Wheat- 
land, sharing  and  enjoying  the  dignified  retirement  of 
her  uncle. 

The  society  of  that  revered  man  who  was  preparing 
for  a  better  world  and  appealing  to  a  higher  judgment 
than  that  of  a  selfish  faction,  the  calm  pleasures  of  coun- 
try life,  the  continued  attentions  of  enthusiastic  admirers, 
the  many  visits  of  dear  tried  friends,  the  consolations 
of  religion,  and  the  devotion  of  one  true  heart  that  had 
never  ceased  its  homage,  was  her  compensation  for  many 
trials. 


522  HARRIET    LANE. 

In  1863,  Miss  Lane  was  confirmed  in  the  Episcopal 
Church,  at  Oxford,  Philadelphia,  of  which  her  uncle  was 
the  rector,  by  Bishop  Stevens.  She  would  have  joined 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  to  which  her  uncle  belonged, 
had  he  desired  it,  because  she  was  as  liberal  as  he  is 
known  to  have  been  in  his  religious  views,  and  they 
never  differed  on  doctrinal  points.  But  several  circum- 
stances had  made  it  convenient  for  her  to  attend  the 
Episcopal  Church  a  great  deal,  and  she  had  early  learned 
to  love  its  beautiful  prayer  book,  and  in  any  other  church 
to  miss  its  significant  forms. 

About  this  time  occurred  the  death  of  James  B.  Lane, 
leaving  Harriet  no  brother  nor  sister,  nor  indeed  any 
near  relations  except  her  two  uncles,  the  Rev.  E.  Y. 
Buchanan,  and  the  ex-President,  to  whom  she  clung  with 
renewed  affection. 

However,  one  morning  in  January,  1866,  when  the 
evergreens  before  the  old  house  at  Wheatland  were 
burdened  with  snow,  and  the  lawn  was  white,  and  the 
spring  was  frozen,  and  icicles  hung  from  the  roof,  the 
grounds  there  were  made  gay  and  bright  by  the  asseni- 
blao^e  of  carriages  that  brought  euests  to  see  the  mar- 
riage,  by  the  Rev,  Edward  Y.  Buchanan,  of  Harriet 
Lane  and  Henry  Elliott  Johnston.  Indoors,  there  was 
nothing  in  the  glow  of  the  fire,  the  odor  of  the  flowers, 
the  gratified  appearance  of  the  host,  or  the  sunny  faces 
of  the  wedding  party,  to  indicate  the  struggle  just  finished 
between  two  loves. 

Some  weeks  after  the  marriage,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John- 


HER    MARRIAGE.  523 

•  ston  went  to  Cuba,  where  they  spent  a  month  or  two 
most  delightfully.  From  there,  Mr.  Johnston  took  his 
wife  to  his  house  in  Baltimore,  which,  with  characteristic 
taste,  thoughtfulness,  and  liberality,  he  had  elegantly 
and  luxuriously  fitted  up  for  the  lady  of  his  dreams,  to 
whom  he  forthwith  presented  it. 

It  would  scarcely  be  fair  to  dwell,  in  print,  upon  the 
happiness  of  this  congenial  pair,  but  it  would  be  unpar- 
donable if  we  did  not  assure  the  reader,  that  Mr.  John- 
ston is  all  that  Miss  Lane's  husband  oucjht  to  be.  Even 
those  who  naturally  disliked  to  see  Miss  Lane  pass  out 
of  the  house  of  her  great  kinsman  into  any  other  home, 
soon  became  charmed  with  Mr.  Johnston,  and  could  not 
but  congratulate  Miss  Lane  upon  this  choice,  made  from 
many  lovers. 

Nor  can  we  consent  to  close  this  sketch  of  Mrs.  John- 
ston's life  without  attractin<T  attention  to  her  in  her  last 
and  most  endearing  relation.  In  her  most  glorious  days, 
she  was  never  more  beautiful  than  as  a  mother,  and  the 
matronly  grace  with  which  she  cares  for  her  child  is 
sweeter  to  her  husband  than  the  early  flush  or  the 
queenly  prime  when  he  occasionally  ventured  on  pres- 
ents of  fruits  and  flowers. 

Would  that  we  could  now  drop  the  curtain  upon  this 
fair  domestic  scene  without  noticinc:  the  cloud  that  dark- 
ened  the  prosperous  life  of  Mrs.  Johnston  after  her  mar- 
riage. The  death  of  Mr.  Buchanan  caused  her  the 
greatest  grief  of  her  life,  and  is  its  permanent  bereave- 
ment. 


524  HARRIET    LANE. 

Again,  she  is  at  Wheatland — now  her  own  summer 
liome — mourning  for  the  good  man  gone  ;  but  comforted 
by  tiie  thought  that,  though  in  all  his  dear  familiar  haunts 
she  will  see  him  nevermore,  he  is  already  understood 
and  appreciated,  and  that  history  is  even  now  doing  him 
jus/ ice.  Comforted  also  in  knowing  that  her  husband 
ministered  to  her  uncle's  dying  days,  and  that  he  re- 
ceived his  unqualified  confidence  and  affection.  Com- 
torted  also  in  the  sweet  task,  the  great  work  of  training 
up  her  boy  to  be  worthy  the  name  of  James  Buchanan 
Johnston,         .....  .... 

This  son  grew  to  be  a  noble  youth  of  fourteen,  and 
died  on  the  25th  of  March,  1881.  His  character  was 
affectionate  and  truthful,  and  his  bearing  was  distin- 
guished for  its  grace.  His  death  was  a  terrible  blow  to 
his  parents,  of  whom  and  of  him  Judge  Jere.  S.  Black 
wrote  as  follows  in  a  letter  to  a  friend : 

"I  have  just  returned  from  the  funeral  of  James 
Buchanan  Johnston,  affected  by  a  deeper  sense  of  be- 
reavement than  any  death  outside  of  my  own  immediate 
family  has  caused  me  in  many  years.  It  is  strange  that 
we  cannot  get  hardened  to  these  calamities  in  the  course 
of  time,  or  at  least  learn  to  accept  some  measure  of  con- 
solation when  our  friends  are  fatally  stricken.  But  human 
philosophy,  how  well  soever  it  may  be  strengthened  by 
trials,  is  powerless  to  save  our  equanimity  in  cases  like 
this.  The  overwhelminor  trrief  of  that  beloved  mother  and 
the  awful  break-down  of  the  proud  father's  spirit  cannot 
even  be   thought  of  without  strong  emotion.     Besides 


DEATH    OF    HER   SON.  525 

that  I  had  built  much  hope  of  my  own  upon  the  future 
of  that  bright  and  beautiful  boy.  He  was  gifted  with 
uncommon  talents,  so  well  cultivated,  and  developing  so 
rapidly,  that  even  at  the  age  of  fourteen  he  was  intel- 
lectually a  full-grown  man.  With  moral  principles 
clearly  defined  and  quick  perceptions  of  the  right,  his 
sense  of  justice  and  his  love  of  truth  would  have  given 
him  a  dignity  of  character  not  surpassed  by  that  of  his 
illustrious  uncle.  But  these  visions  of  a  moment  are 
faded  forever,  and  we  can  only  sigh  '  for  the  touch  of  a 
vanished  hand '  and  listen  in  vain  'for  the  sound  of  a 
voice  that  is  still.'  " 


XXI. 

MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

To  Mrs.  Lincoln  more  than  to  any  other  President's 
Tvife  was  the  White  House  an  ambition.  She  had  ever 
aspired  to  reach  it,  and  when  it  became  her  home,  it  was 
the  fruition  of  a  hope  long  entertained,  the  gratification 
of  the  great  desire  of  her  Hfe.  In  her  early  youth  she 
repeatedly  asserted  that  she  should  be  a  President's 
wife,  and  so  profoundly  impressed  was  she  with  this 
idea,  that  she  calculated  the  probabilities  of  such  a  suc- 
cess with  all  her  male  friends.  She  refused  an  offer  of 
marriage  from  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  then  a  rising  young 
lawyer,  doubting  his  ability  to  gratify  her  ambition,  and 
accepted  a  man  who  at  that  time  seemed  to  others  the 
least  likely  to  be  the  President  of  the  United  States. 

Mary  Todd  was  a  Kentuckian  by  birth,  and  a  member 
of  the  good  old  Todd  family,  of  Lexington.  Her 
younger  years  were  spent  in  that  homely  town  of 
beautiful  surroundings,  with  an  aunt  who  reared  her,  she 
being  an  orphan.  Childhood  and  youth  were  passed  in 
comfort  and  comparative  luxury,  nor  did  she  ever  know 
poverty ;  but  her  restless  nature  found  but  little  happi- 
ness in  the  society  of  her  elders,  and  she  went,  when 
just  merging  into  womanhood,  to  reside  with  her  sister 

in  Springfield.     The  attraction  of  this,  then  small  place, 
(526) 


..g^£*' 


-^   ujai^ALLi^Tj.'vi^ 


HER    MARRIAGE    TO    MR.    LINCOLN.  527 

was  greatly  augmented  by  the  society  of  the  young 
people,  and  Mary  Todd  passed  the  pleasantest  years  of 
her  life  in  her  sister's  western  home.  On  the  4th  of 
November,  1S42,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  she  was 
married  to  Abraham  Lincoln,  a  prominent  lawyer,  of 
Illinois.  A  letter  written  the  following  May,  to  Mr. 
Speed,  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  by  Mr.  Lincoln,  contains 
the  followinor  mention  of  his  domestic  life:  "We  are 
not  keeping  house,"  he  says,  "but  boarding  at  the  Globe 
Tavern,  which  is  very  well  kept  now  by  a  widow  lady, 
of  the  name  of  Beck.  Our  rooms  are  the  same  Dr. 
Wallace  occupied  there,  and  boarding  only  costs  four 
dollars  a  week.  I  most  heartily  wish  you  and  your 
Fanny  will  not  fail  to  come.  Just  let  us  know  the  time, 
a  week  in  advance,  and  we  will  have  a  room  prepared 
for  you,  and  we'll  all  be  merry  together  for  a  while." 
The  pleasant  spirits  in  which  the  husband  wTOte,  must 
have  argued  well  for  the  married  life  they  had  entered 
upon.  Although  much  in  public  life,  Mr.  Lincoln  was 
holding  no  office  at  the  time  of  his  marriage,  but  four 
years  later  he  was  elected  to  Congress,  and  took  his 
seat  December  6th,  1S47.  ^'^^^-  Lincoln  did  not  accom- 
pany her  husband  to  Washington,  but  remained  at  her 
home.  It  was  a  season  of  war  and  general  disturbance 
throughout  the  country,  and  while  her  husband  attended 
to  his  duties  at  the  Capital,  she  lived  quiedy  with  her 
children  in  Springfield.  In  August  he  returned  to  enter 
upon  the  duties  of  his  profession,  and  to  "devote  him- 
self to  them  through  a  series  of  years,  less  disturbed  by 


528  MARY   TODD    LINCOLN. 

diversions  into  State  and  National  politics  than  he  had 
been  during-  any  previous  period  of  his  business  life.  It 
was  to  him  a  time  of  rest,  of  reading,  of  social  happi- 
ness, and  of  professional  prosperity.  He  was  a  happy 
father,  and  took  an  almost  unbounded  pleasure  in  his 
children.  Their  sweet  young  natures  were  to  him  a 
perpetual  source  of  delight.  He  was  never  impatient 
with  their  petulance  and  restlessness,  loved  always  to 
be  with  them,  and  took  them  into  his  heart  with  a  fond- 
ness which  was  unspeakable.  It  was  a  fondness  so 
tender  and  profound  as  to  blind  him  to  their  imperfec- 
tions, and  to  expel  from  him  every  particle  of  sternness 
in  his  management  of  them." 

At  this  time  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  the  mother  of  four 
children,  and  though  one  had  passed  on  to  the  higher 
life,  her  home  was  one  of  happiness.  Ministered  to  by 
a  husband  who  never  knew  how  to  be  aught  but  kind 
to  her,  and  surrounded  by  evidences  of  prosperity,  her 
lines  had  fallen  in  pleasant  places,  and  she  was  consid- 
ered by  her  friends  a  fortunate  woman. 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  a  hard  student  and  constant  reader, 
and  was  steadily  progressing  in  knowledge.  Thrown 
among  talented  and  educated  gentlemen,  and  possess- 
ing an  intense  desire  for  improvement,  he  had  become, 
during  the  years  of  his  married  life,  a  superior  lawyer 
and  statesman.  His  was  an  aspiring'  nature,  striving 
for  the  golden  truths  of  sage  experience. 

His  enemies  sometimes  speak  of  him  as  a  man  who 
owed  his  eminence  rather  to  the  contrast  between  his 


MR.    LINCOLN  S    I'LACE    IN    IIISIOKV.  529 

social  and  his  political  rank,  between  his  qualifications 
and  the  place  in  history  which  it  was  his  fortune  to  fill, 
than  to  his  personal  character  or  his  political  capacity, 
but  the  estimate  is  not  a  true  one.  A  man  so  rev^ered 
as  is  his  memory  by  all  classes  of  his  countrymen,  had 
a  character  untarnished  by  corruption,  and  a  moral  re- 
finement far  above  the  comprehension  of  the  average 
public  man.  He  was  in  his  domestic  life  the  embodiment 
of  fidelity  and  gentleness.  His  career  as  a  statesman, 
and  not  the  manner  of  his  death,  places  him  next  to 
Washinofton  in  the  hearts  of  Americans.  His  services 
to  the  country  rank  as  the  noblest  performed  in  its  his 
tory  after  those  of  Washington.  Opportunity,  while  it 
did  much  for  him,  was  not  all  that  made  Lincoln 
great ;  it  w^as  his  readiness  to  meet  the  emergency 
when  it  came ;  his  ability  to  seize  the  occasion,  and 
use  it  to  the  honor  of  his  country,  and  his  own  lasting 
fame.    ) 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  so  intensely  individual  in  his  career, 
and  his  life  was  so  devoted  to  public  affairs,  that  it  is 
with  difficulty  that  a  sketch  of  Mrs.  Lincoln  can  be 
written  that  is  not  largely  composed  of  the  events  per- 
taining to  the  official  life  of  her  husband.  The  White 
House  during  her  life  in  it  was  the  reverse  of  gay.  Of- 
ficials were  the  chief  callers  at  the  mansion,  and  the 
movement  of  armies,  and  the  news  from  the  front  occu- 
pied the  attention  of  its  inmates.  She  was  less  fortu- 
nate than  any  lady  who  had  ever  preceded  her  in  this 
respect,  and  to  judge  of  her  success  in  her  position,  it  is 

34 


530  MARY   TODD    LI^•COLN. 

needful  to  keep  In  mind  the  conditions  under  which  the 
administration  existed. 

The  Republican  Convention  at  Chicago  verified  Mrs. 
Lincoln's  prophecy  of  being  the  wife  of  a  President.  It 
assembled  the  i6th  of  June,  i860,  and  after  a  close  con- 
test between  the  two  favorites  of  the  Republican  party 
— Governor  Seward  and  Mr.  Lincoln — the  latter  was 
declared  unanimously  nominated  as  a  candidate  for 
the  Presidency.  In  Springfield,  Mrs.  Lincoln  waited  in 
her  own  home  for  the  result  of  her  prediction,  and  when 
at  noon  the  cannon  on  the  public  square  announced  the 
decision  of  the  Convention,  breathless  with  expectancy, 
she  scarcdy  dared  to  ask  the  result.  Her  husband,  in 
the  excitement  of  the  moment,  did  not  forget  her,  but 
putting  the  telegram  in  his  pocket,  remarked  to  his 
friends  that  "  there  was  a  little  woman  on  Eighth  street 
who  had  some  Interest  in  the  matter,"  walked  home  to 
gladden  her  heart  with  the  good  news.  That  Friday 
night  must  have  been  the  very  happiest  of  her  life,  for 
few  women  have  ever  craved  the  position  as  she  did, 
and  it  was  hers !  Crowds  of  citizens  and  strangers 
thronged  her  home  all  the  afternoon,  and  the  roar  of 
cannon  and  the  wild,  tumultuous  shouts  of  excited  men 
filled  the  town  with  a  deafeninof  noise.  At  niMit  the  Re- 
publicans  marched  in  a  body  to  Mr.  Lincoln's  house, 
and,  after  a  brief  speech,  were  invited,  as  many  as  could 
get  into  the  house,  to  enter,  "the  crowd  responding  that 
after  the  fourth  of  March  they  would  give  him  a  larger 
house.     The  people  did  not  retire  until  a  late  hour,  and 


I 


SOCIAL   OBSERVANCES.  53 1 

then  moved  off  reluctantly,  leaving  the  excited  household 
to  their  rest." 

And  now  commenced  the  life  which  Mrs.  Lincoln  had 
so  long  anticipated,  and  if  her  husband  \vas  not  elated,  she 
was,  and  the  hearts  of  these  two,  so  nearly  concerned  in 
this  great  honor,  beat  from  widely  different  emotions. 
"He  could  put  on  none  of  the  airs  of  eminence;  he 
could  place  no  bars  between  himself  and  those  who  had 
honored  him.  Men  who  entered  his  house  impressed 
with  a  sense  of  his  new  dignities,  found  him  the  same 
honest,  affectionate,  true-hearted  and  simple-minded 
Abraham  Lincoln  that  he  had  always  been.  He  an- 
swered his  own  bell,  accompanied  his  visitors  to  the  door 
when  they  retired,  and  felt  all  that  interfered  with  his  old 
homely  and  hearty  habits  of  hospitality  as  a  burden — al- 
most an  impertinence."  She,  annoyed  by  the  crowds 
who  thronged  the  house,  and  the  constant  interruptions, 
found  It  so  Intolerable  that  Mr.  Lincoln  took  a  room  in 
the  State  House,  and  met  his  friends  there  until  his  de- 
parture for  Washington. 

Mrs.  Lincoln  was  not  greatly  inclined  to  observe  the 
requirements  of  her  social  position,  and  she  thereby  lost 
opportunities  of  advancing  her  husband's  interests  of 
which  she  perhaps  was  unaware.  She  did  not  rightly 
estimate  the  importance  of  conciliatory  address  with 
friend  and  foe  alike,  and  seemed  not  conscious  of  the 
immense  assistance  which,  as  the  wife  of  a  public  man, 
she  had  it  in  her  power  to  give  her  husband.  And  this 
was  all  the  more  singular  for  the  reason  that  she  was 
very  ambitious. 


532  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

Just  after  the  election,  a  circumstance  occurred  which 
Mrs.  Lincoln  interpreted  in  a  manner  which  forced  one 
to  recall  the  predictions  of  her  childhood,  Mr.  Lincoln 
thus  repeated  It.  "  It  was  after  my  election,  when  the 
news  had  been  coming  in  thick  and  fast  all  day,  and  there 
had  been  a  great  'hurrah,  boysl'  so  that  I  was  well  tired 
out  and  went  home  to  rest,  throwing  myself  upon  a 
lounge  in  my  chamber.  Opposite  to  where  I  lay  v/as  a 
bureau  with  a  swinging  glass  upon  it;  and  looking  in 
that  glass,  I  saw  myself  reflected  nearly  at  full  length ; 
but  my  face,  I  noticed,,  had  two  separate  and  distinct 
images,  the  tip  of  the  nose  of  one  being  about  three  inches 
from  the  tip  of  the  other.  I  was  a  little  bothered,  per- 
haps startled,  and  got  up  and  looked  in  the  glass,  but 
the  illusion  vanished.  On  lying  down  again,  I  saw  it  a 
second  time,  plainer,  if  possible,  than  before;  and  then  I 
noticed  that  one  of  the  faces  was  a  little  paler,  say  five 
shades,  than  the  other.  I  got  up  and  the  thing  melted 
away  and  I  went  off,  and  in  the  excitement  of  the  hour 
forgot  all  about  it — nearly,,  but  not  quite,  for  the  thing 
would  once  in  a  while  come  up,  and  give  me  a  little 
pang,  as  though  something  uncomfortable  had  hap- 
pened. When  I  went  home,.  I  told  my  wife  about  it,  and 
a  few  days  after  I  tried  the  experiment  again,  when,  sure 
enough,  the  thing  came  back  again ;  but  I  never  suc- 
ceeded in  bringing  the  ghost  back  after  that,  though  I 
once  tried  very  industriously  to  show  it  to  my  wife,  who 
was  worried  about  it  somewhat.  She  thought  it  was  a 
'sigrn'  that  I  was  to  be  elected  to  a    second  term   of 


MR,    LINCOLN  S   VISION.  533 

office,  and  that  the  paleness  of  one  of  the  faces  was 
an  omen  that  I  should  not  see  life  through  the  second 
term," 

Mr,  Lincoln  regarded  the  vision  as  an  optical  illusion, 
caused  from  nervousness,  "  yet,  widi  tliat  tinge  of  super- 
stition which  clings  to  every  sensitive  and  deeply 
thoughtful  man,  in  a  world  full  of  mysteries,  he  was  so 
far  affected  by  it  as  to  feel  that  •*  somediing  uncom- 
fortable had  happened,'"  Viewed  in  the  light  of  subse- 
quent events,  Mrs,  Lincoln's  prophetic  interpretation  of 
the  vision  had  almost  a  startling  import 

Mr,  and  Mrs,  Lincoln  and  their  three  boys,  accom- 
panied by  a  number  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  old  friends,  left 
Springfield  in  a  special  car,  and  all  along  the  route  tliey 
were  welcomed  by  the  people  with  every  demonstration 
of  hearty  good-will.  It  was  a  time  of  anxiety,  and  the 
throngs  that  gathered  about  the  newly  elected  Chief 
Magistrate  seemed  impelled  by  a  stronger  feeling  tlian 
mere  curiosity  or  excitement  Between  Chicago  and 
Indianapolis,  the  stations  were  decorated,  the  towns  and 
villages  were  gay  with  flags  and  flower-bedecked  mot- 
toes, and  wherever  a  stop  was  made,  men,  women  and 
children  grasped  the  hand  of  Mr,  Lincoln,  and  wished 
him  a  safe  journey  and  all  success  in  the  trying  place  he 
was  eoinor  to  filL 

An  immense  crowd  cheered  him  as  the  train  reached 
the  depot  at  Indianapolis, and  a  national  salute  was  fired 
in  his  honor.  The  Cincinnati  committee  of  reception, 
filling  his  car,  met  the  party  there^  and  accompanied  it 


534  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

next  day.  The  train  passed  by  the  burial-place  of  Gen- 
eral Harrison,  who  had  for  a  short  month  occupied  the 
Presidential  chair,  and  here  the  family  of  the  deceased 
patriot  were  assembled.  Mr.  Lincoln  bowed  his  re- 
spects to  the  group  and  to  the  memory  of  his  prede- 
cessor. 

The  morning  of  the  fourth  of  March,  1861,  broke 
beautifully  clear,  and  it  found  General  Scott  and  the 
Washin;>ton  police  in  readiness  for  the  day.  The  friends 
of  Mr.  Lincoln  had  gathered  in  from  far  and  near,  deter- 
mined that  he  should  be  inauQfurated.  In  the  hearts  of 
the  surging  crowds  there  was  anxiety;  but  outside  all 
looked  as  usual  on  such  occasions,  with  the  single  excep- 
tion of  an  extraordinary  display  of  soldiers.  The  public 
buildings,  the  schools  and  most  of  the  places  of  business 
were  closed  during  the  day,  and  the  stars  and  stripes 
were  floating  from  every  flag-staff.  There  was  a  great 
desire  to  hear  Mr.  Lincoln's  inaugural  ;  and  at  an  early 
hour,  Pennsylvania  Avenue  was  full  of  people,  wending 
their  way  to  the  east  front  of  the  Capitol,  from  which  it 
was  to  be  delivered. 

At  five  minutes  before  twelve  o'clock,  Vice-President 
Breckinridge  and  Senator  Foote  escorted  Mr.  Hamlin, 
the  Vice-President  elect,  into  the  Senate  Chamber,  and 
gave  him  a  seat  at  the  left  of  the  chair.  At  twelve,  Mr. 
Breckinridge  announced  the  Senate  adjourned,  and  then 
conducted  Mr.  Hamlin  to  the  seat  he  had  vacated.  At 
this  moment,  the  foreign  diplomats,  of  whom  there  was 
a  very  large  and  brilliant  representation,  entered   the 


INAUGURATION    OF    MR.    LINCOLN.  535 

chamber,  and  took  the  seats  assigned  to  them.  At  a 
quarter  before  one  o'clock,  the  Judges  of  the  Supreme 
Court  entered,  with  the  venerable  Chief-Justice  Taney 
at  their  head,  each  exchanging  salutes  with  the  new 
Vice-President,  as  they  took  their  seats.  At  a  quarter 
past  one  o'clock,  an  unusual  stir  and  excitement  an- 
nounced the  coming  of  th^  most  important  personage 
of  the  occasion.  It  was  a  relief  to  many  to  know  that 
he  was  safely  within  the  building ;  and  those  who  were 
assembled  in  the  hall  regarded  with  the  profoundest 
interest  the  entrance  of  President  Buchanan  and  the 
President  elect — the  outofolnof  and  the  incominor  man. 
A  procession  was  then  formed  which  passed  to  the  plat- 
form erected  for  the  ceremonies  of  the  occasion,  in  the 
following  order:  Marshal  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
Judges  of  the  Supreme  Courts  and  Sergeant-at-Arms, 
Senate  Committee  of  Arrangements,  President  of  the 
Senate,  Senators,  Diplomatic  Corps,  heads  of  depart- 
ments, Governors  of  States  and  such  others  as  were  in 
the  chamber. 

^  ^  H:  H:  4:  H: 

After  the  readino-  of  the  inauorural  and  the  oath  of 
office,  administered  by  the  venerable  Chief-Justice 
Taney,  Mr.  Lincoln  was  escorted  back  to  the  White 
House,  where  Mr.  Buchanan  took  leave  of  him,  and 
where  he  received  the  large  number  of  persons  who 
called  to  see  him. 

During  the  afternoon,  Mrs.  Lincoln  took  possession 
of  the  White  House,  and  her  eventful  life  commenced  in 
Washington. 


536  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

The  following  days  were  spent  with  her  sisters  in 
happy  bustle  and  excitement,  arranging  for  the  first 
levee,  and  domesticating  themselves  in  their  new 
abode. 

It  was  held  the  9th  of  March,  and  was  the  only  one 
of  the  season.  Her  personal  appearance  was  described 
in  these  words : 

"  Mrs,'  Lincoln  stood  a  few  paces  from  her  husband, 
assisted  by  her  sisters,  Mrs.  Edwards  and  Mrs.  Baker, 
together  with  two  of  her  nieces,  and  was  attired  in  a  rich 
pink  moire-antique,  pearl  ornaments,  and  flowers  in  her 
hair  and  hands.  She  is  a  pleasant-looking,  elegant- 
appearing  lady,  of  perhaps  forty,  somewhat  inclined  to 
stoutness,  but  withal  fine-looking  and  self-possessed." 
The  levee  was  a  brilliant  one,  and  many  citizens  and 
strangers,  not  accustomed  to  taking  part  in  the  gay 
world  about  them,  did  themselves  the  pleasure  of  pay- 
ing their  respects  to  the  new  President  and  his  family. 
It  was  perhaps  the  proudest  occasion  of  Mrs.  Lincoln's 
life — a  triumph  she  had  often  mused  upon  and  looked 
forward  to  as  in  store  for  her.  The  desire  of  her  heart 
was  gratified,  and  she  was  mistress  of  the  White 
House. 

Mrs.  Lincoln  was  a  fortunate  woman  in  that  she 
secured  the  measure  of  her  ambition,  but  it  was  the 
impartial  judgment  of  her  friends  that  she  was  not  a 
happy  person.  The  match  was  an  unfortunate  one,  in 
that  it  united  two  people  of  widely  divergent  tastes  and 
characteristics.    Mr.  Lincoln  was  utterly  devoid  of  those 


FOND    OF    BRILLIANT    COMPANY.  537 

social  qualities  which  would  have  made  him  agreeable 
in  the  drawing-room  and  in  the  presence  of  fashionable 
people.  His  wife  was  fond  of  society,  pleased  with  ex- 
citement, and  gratified  to  be  among  the  gay  and  brilliant 
company  which  she,  by  reason  of  her  husband's  position, 
found  herself  in.  She  would  have  made  the  White 
House,  socially,  what  it  was  under  other  administrations, 
but  that  was  impossible.  She  found  herself  surrounded 
on  every  side  by  people  who  were  ready  to  exaggerate 
her  shortcomings,  find  fault  with  her  deportment  on  all 
occasions  and  criticise  her  performance  of  all  her  semi- 
official duties.  The  state  dinners  were  abandoned  and 
she  was  said  to  be  parsimonious.  Weekly  receptions 
were  substituted,  and  her  entertainments  were  made  the 
topic  of  remark.  The  first  two  years  of  the  administra- 
tion of  Mr.  Lincoln  were  years  of  the  severest  trial  to 
him,  and  his  gloom  and  absorption  affected  his  family. 
The  death  of  W^illie,  the  second  son,  occurred  during 
this  period  of  anxiety,  and  for  nearly  two  more  years 
the  President's  family  were  in  mourning.  Mrs.  Lincoln 
grieved  long  and  deeply  over  her  loss,  and  it  was  not 
possible  for  either  husband  or  wife  to  allude  to  him  with- 
out showing  intense  feeling.  Mr.  Lincoln  rarely  men- 
tioned his  name,  and  Mrs.  Lincoln  never  afterward 
entered  the  room  where  he  died,  or  the  Blue  Room  in 
which  his  body  lay.  Several  instances  are  told  by  Mr. 
Carpenter,  the  artist,  of  the  affection  entertained  by  the 
President  for  his  sons.  On  one  occasion  while  paying  a 
visit  to  Commodore  Porter  at  Fortress  Monroe,  "  Tad," 


538  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

the  youngest  son,  accompanied  his  father,  and  the  latter, 
noticing  that  the  banks  of  the  river  were  dotted  with 
spring  blossoms,  the  President  said,  with  the  manner  of 
one  asking  a  special  favor :  "  Commodore,  Tad  is  very 
fond  of  flowers  ;  won't  you  let  a  couple  of  your  men  take 
a  boat  and  c-o  with  him  for  an  hour  or  two  alonof  shore, 
and  gather  a  few  ?  it  will  be  a  great  gratification  to  him." 
On  another  occasion,  while  he  was  at  Fortress  Monroe 
awaiting  military  operations  upon  the  Peninsula,  he 
called  his  aide,  who  was  writing  in  the  adjoining  room, 
and  read  to  him  selections  from  "  Hamlet "  and  "  Kins" 
John."  Reciting  the  words  where  Constance  bewails 
her  imprisoned  lost  boy,  Mr.  Lincoln  said:  "Colonel 
did  you  ever  dream  of  a  lost  friend,  and  feel  that  you 
were  holding  sweet  communion  with  that  friend,  and  yet 
have  a  sad  consciousness  that  it  was  not  a  reality  ?  Just 
so  I  dream  of  my  boy  Willie."  Overcome  with  emo- 
tion, he  dropped  his  head  on  the  table  and  sobbed 
aloud. 

A  man  who  could  thus  feel  towards  his  children  may 
well  be  called  an  excellent  father:  and  such  Mr.  Lincoln 
w^as.  He  was,  as  a  lady  relative  of  his  who  spent  many 
months  in  his  house  said  of  him,  "all  that  a  husband, 
father  and  neighbor  should  be :  kind  and  affectionate  to 
his  wdfe  and  child  and  very  pleasant  to  all  around  him. 
Never,"  said  she,  "did  I  hear  him  utter  an  unkind 
word." 

Mr.  Herndon,  Mr.  Lincoln's  law  partner,  who  knew 
both  husband  and  wife  well,  summed  up  his  estimate. 


LONELY    LIFE    IN    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  539 

based  on  long  acquaintance,  In  a  single  sentence:  "All 
that  I  know  ennobles  both."  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  a  lonely 
woman  much  of  the  time  spent  In  the  White  House. 
The  President  had  but  little  leisure  to  devote  to  her,  and 
the  state  of  the  country  was  such  that  any  display  or 
gayety  seemed  out  of  keeping  with  the  position  she  occu- 
pied. In  the  summer  of  1S64,  the  political  canvas  ab- 
sorbed attention,  and  much  of  the  season  Mrs.  Lincoln 
spent  at  the  watering-places.  In  the  autumn  she  re- 
newed the  receptions,  and  after  the  re-election  of  Mr. 
Lincoln  the  White  House  habitues  saw  promise  of  more 
pleasure  than  had  been  enjoyed  there.  The  New  Year 
leception  of  1865  was  the  most  brilliant  entertainment 
<tlven  by  the  administration.  T4iousands  of  people  paid 
iheir  respects  to  the  President  and  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and 
congratulated  them  on  the  confidence  reposed  in  him  by 
the  people.  /  The  war  was  drawing  to  a  close,  and  the 
North  was  Inclined  to  look  upon  the  Union  as  well-nigh 
restored.  The  inauguration  was  anxiously  looked  for- 
ward to,  and  when  It  was  safely  over  the  people 
breathed  freer,  and  gave  up  the  fear  that  had  oppressed 
them. 

There  was  general  rejoicing  in  the  land  when  the  long 
anticipated  peace  was  declared.  General  Lee  surren- 
dered on  the  9th  of  April,  and  the  White  House  was  the 
scene  of  excitement  from  that  time  on  to  the  close  of 
the  President's  life.  People  thronged  to  congratulate 
him,  and  from  all  parts  of  the  nation  telegrams  poured 
in  upon  him.     The  14th  of  April  was  the  fourth  anni- 


540  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

versary  of  the  fall  of  Sumter,  and  on  that  evening  the 
President,  Mrs.  Lincoln,  Major  Rathbone,  of  the  United 
States  army,  and  a  daughter  of  Senator  Harris  attended, 
by  invitation,  the  performance  at  Ford's  Theatre.  A 
large  audience  greeted  the  President  as  he  took  his  seat 
at  the  front  of  the  private  box.  As  he  sat  waiting  for 
the  curtain  to  rise  on  the  third  act,  looking  pensive  and 
sad,  as  v/as  his  wont,  he  was  shot  from  behind  by  John 
Wilkes  Booth,  the  leader  of  a  gang  of  conspirators,  who 
had  carefully  matured  their  plans  to  kill  the  President 
and  members  of  the  Cabinet.  The  shot  was  a  deadly 
one,  and  total  insensibility  followed  itj 

Mrs.  Lincoln,  unnerved  by  the  sudden  and  terrible 
event,  was  assisted  from  the  theatre  to  a  house  across  the 
street,  where  her  husband  had  been  taken.  She  re- 
mained beside  him  until  death  released  him  from  all 
pain.  The  return  to  the  White  House  was  a  journey 
never  to  be  forgotten  by  those  who  witnessed  it.  The 
grief  of  Mrs.  Lincoln  and  her  children  was  shared  by  a 
nation  of  people,  but  nothing  could  restore  the  dead,  or 
give  back  the  husband  and  father  who  went  out  from 
their  midst  so  well  only  the  evening  before. 

The  afternoon  of  the  day  on  which  the  President  was 
shot  he  was  out  driving  with  his  wife,  and  she  subse- 
quently remarked  that  she  never  saw  him  so  supremely 
happy  as  on  this  occasion.  When  the  carriage  was 
ordered  she  asked  him  if  he  would  like  any  one  to  ac- 
company them,  and  he  replied,  "  No ;  I  prefer  to  ride 
by  ourselves  to-day."     During  the  ride  his  wife  spoke 


DEATH    OF    PRESIDENT    LINCOLN.  54I 

of  his  cheerfulness,  and  his  answer  was  :  "  Well,  I  may 
feel  happy,  Mary,  for  I  consider  this  day  the  war  has 
come  to  a  close ;  "  and  then  added :  "  We  must  both 
be  more  cheerful  in  the  future  ;  between  the  war  and 
the  loss  of  our  darling  Willie,  we  have  been  very  miser- 
able." His  household  was  very  miserable  from  that 
awful  niorht. 

The  grief  manifested  by  little  Tad,  the  youngest  son, 
on  learninor  that  his  father  had  been  shot  was  touching 
to  behold.  For  twenty-four  hours  he  was  inconsolable. 
He  frequently  said  that  "his  father  was  never  happy  after 
he  came  here,"  and  asked  questions  of  those  about  him 
as  to  their  belief  in  his  being  in  heaven.  He  seemed 
resigned  when  this  idea  fastened  itself  strongly  in  his 
mind,  and  in  his  simplicity  he  imagined  that  his  father's 
happiness  in  heaven  made  the  sun  shine  brightly. 

Mrs.  Lincoln  never  recovered  from  the  shock.  After 
the  death  of  the  President  she  remained  in  the  White 
House  five  weeks,  too  ill  to  depart.  The  remains  of  her 
husband  were  borne  back  to  Illinois,  through  towns, 
villages  and  hamlets,  bearing  every  outward  token  of 
w^oe,  and  the  cortege  was  met  at  each  stopping-place  by 
thousands  of  mourners  who  paid  their  respects  to  the 
great  dead.  Impressive  scenes  occurred  all  along  the 
route,  and  the  funeral  pageant  which  met  the  remains  at 
Springfield  was  the  largest  ever  assembled  in  the 
country.  Robert  Lincoln,  the  eldest  son,  accompanied 
the  remains,  and  after  all  honor  had  been  paid  the  body 
of  the  martyred  father,  he  returned  to  remove  his  mother 
to  their  future  home. 


542  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

The  White  House  was  like  a  public  building  during 
these  sad  weeks.  The  officials  were  embarrassed  under 
the  extraordinary  circumstances,  and  the  mansion  was 
given  over  to  servants.  The  soldiers  on  duty  there  had 
no  other  authority  than  to  keep  out  the  rabble,  and  no 
one  felt  justified  in  taking  charge  of  the  house  while 
Mrs.  Lincoln  remained.  The  new  President,  Mr.  John- 
son, disavowed  any  inclination  to  hasten  her  departure ; 
and  when  at  last  Mrs.  Lincoln  removed  from  the  build- 
ing, it  was  in  the  condition  to  be  expected  after  the  hard 
usage  it  had  received  subsequent  to  the  tragedy. 

Mrs.  Lincoln  left  Washington  accompanied  by  her 
sons,  the  youngest,  "Tad,"  being  her  special  care  and 
protection. 

The  country  learned  with  sincere  regret  of  the  death 
of  this  lad  after  the  return  of  the  family  to  their  western 
home.  Mrs.  Lincoln,  after  all  the  excitement  and  the 
trials  through  which  she  had  passed,  was  unable  to  live 
quietly  in  any  place,  and  travelled  with  the  hope  of  re- 
covering her  health.  In  1868  she  went  abroad  and  re- 
mained a  considerable  time  in  Germany.  During  her 
stay  there  she  asked  Congress  for  a  pension,  her  letter 
to  the  Vice-President  bearing  date  of  January  ist,  1869. 
The  bill  was  presented  by  Senator  Morton,  of  Indiana, 
and  was  adversely  reported  upon  by  the  Committee  on  ^ 
Pensions.     It  read  as  follows : 

"  The  committee  are  aware  the  friends  of  the  resolu- 
tion expect  to  make  a  permanent  provision  for  the  lady 
under  the  guise  of  a  pension  ;  but  no  evidence  has  been 


PENSION    GRANTED.  543 

furnished  to  them,  or  reasons  assigned  why  such  pro- 
vision should  be  made.  If  such  was  the  intention,  the 
committee  submit,  the  reference  should  have  been  made 
to  some  other  committee,  as  the  Committee  on  Pensions, 
at  least  for  some  years  past,  have  not  thought  it  com- 
patible with  their  duty  or  the  objects  of  their  appoint- 
ment to  recommend  in  any  case  the  granting  of  any 
special  pension,  or  any  pension  of  a  greater  amount  than 
is  allowed  by  some  general  law.  If  they  thought  the 
amount  so  allowed  too  small,  they  would  feel  it  incum- 
bent on  them  to  report  a  general  bill  for  the  relief  in  all 
similar  cases.  If  the  increase  proposed  was  on  account 
of  extraordinary  military  or  naval  services,  the  proper 
reference  would  be  to  the  military  or  naval  committee. 
Under  all  these  circumstances,  the  committee  have  no 
alternative  but  to  report  against  the  passage  of  the  gen- 
eral resolutions." 

Previous  to  this  time  Congress  had  passed  two  Acts 
for  Mrs,  Lincoln.  The  first  duty  performed  by  it  on 
reassembling  after  the  assassination  was  to  provide  for 
the  payment  to  her,  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
the  sum  of  $25,000,  the  salary  of  the  President  for  one 
year.  In  February,  1866,  it  conferred  upon  her  the 
franking  privilege.  In  1870  Congress  voted  her  a  pen- 
sion of  $3,000  a  year.  She  was  thus  provided  for  by 
the  government,  and  having  the  small  estate  left  by  Mr. 
Lincoln,  her  income  enabled  her  to  live  comfortably 
and  independently. 

Broken  in  health  and  depressed  in  spirits,  Mrs.  Lin- 


544  MARY    TODD    LINCOLN. 

coin  has  lived  in  various  countries,  much  of  her  time  for 
several  years  being  spent  in  France.  She  has  not  and 
will  not  recover  from  the  catastrophe  which  robbed  the 
country  of  its  President,  and  her  of  her  husband.  With 
him  died  all  her  hopes  of  ambition,  of  home-life,  and  of 
rest  and  companionship  in  old  age. 

In  October,  1880,  Mrs.  Lincoln  returned  to  the  United 
States  from  France  on  the  steamer  Auieriqiie,  and 
among  her  fellow-voyagers  was  Mile.  Bernhardt,  the 
French  actress.  The  New  York  Su7i,  in  describing  the 
arrival  and  reception  of  the  latter  thus  Incidentally  men- 
tions Mrs.  Lincoln : 

"A  throngf  was  assembled  on  the  dock  and  a  cfreater 
throng  was  in  the  street  outside  the  gates.  During  the 
tedious  process  of  working  the  ship  into  her  dock  there 
was  a  great  crush  in  that  part  of  the  vessel  where  the 
gang  plank  was  to  be  swung.  Among  the  passengers 
who  were  here  gathered  was  an  aged  lady.  She  was 
dressed  plainly  and  almost  commonly.  There  was  a  bad 
rent  in  her  ample  cloak.  Her  face  was  furrowed,  and 
her  hair  was  streaked  with  white.  This  was  the  widow 
of  Abraham  Lincoln.  She  was  almost  unnoticed.  She 
had  come  alone  across  the  ocean,  but  a  nephew  met  her 
at  Quarantine.  She  has  spent  the  last  four  years  in  the 
south  of  France.  When  the  gang  plank  was  finally 
swung  aboard,  Mile.  Bernhardt  and  her  companions,  in- 
cluding Mme.  Columbier  of  the  troupe,  were  the  first  to 
descend.  The  fellow-voyagers  of  the  actress  pressed 
about  her  to  bid  adieu,  and  a  cheer  was  raised,  which 


RETIRED    LIFE    AT    SPRIXCFIELD.  545 

turned  her  head  and  provoked  an  astonished  smile,  as 
she  stepped  upon  the  \vharf.  The  gates  were  besieged, 
and  there  was  some  difficulty  in  brincine  in  the  carriage 
which  was  to  convey  the  actress  to  her  hotel.  She  tem- 
porarily waited  in  the  freight  office  at  the  entrance  to 
the  wharf.  Mrs.  Lincoln,  leaning  on  the  arm  of  her 
nephew,  walked  toward  the  gate.  A  policeman  touched 
the  aged  lady  on  the  shoulder  and  bade  her  stand  back. 
She  retreated  with  her  nephew  into  the  line  of  spectators, 
while  Manager  Abbey's  carriage  was  slowly  brought  in. 
The  Bernhardt  was  handed  inside,  and  the  carriage  made 
its  way  out  through  a  mass  of  struggling  'longshoremen 
and  idlers  who  pressed  about  it  and  stared  in  at  the 
open  windows.  After  it,  went  out  the  others  who  hac^ 
been  passengers  on  the  Aiizeiique,  Mrs.  Lincoln  amon^-; 
the  rest." 

Mrs.  Lincoln  took  up  her  residence  with  her  sister, 
Mrs.  Edwards,  in  Springfield,  Illinois,  and  was  living 
there  when  the  news  of  the  assassination  of  President 
Garfield  shocked  the  world.  For  a  time  the  fact  was 
withheld  from  her  lest  the  revival  of  her  own  grief  should 
entirely  impair  her  health.  The  winter  following  her 
return  home  was  spent  by  her  at  St.  Catharine's,  Canada, 
for  the  benefit  of  her  health.  It  is  scarcely  likely  that 
she  will  ever  be  well  again,  or  participate  in  the  social 
life  of  her  friends.  She  will,  however,  be  an  object  of 
interest  to  the  American  people  as  long  as  she  lives, 
as  the  widow  of  the  first  martyr  President. 

35 


XXII. 

ELIZA  McCARDLE  JOHNSON. 

In  tho  autumn  of  1824,  the  term  of  a  fatherless  boy's 
3ppreri*i.ir,eshlp  expired,  and  he  entered  the  world  rich 
only  in  energy,  and  a  noble  ambition  to  provide  for  a 
widowed  mother.  But  he  was  sensitive  and  anxious  to 
enlarofe  his  facilities  for  an  education,  and  his  stronof 
mind  grasped  and  analyzed  the  fact  that  to  succeed  he 
must  form  new  ties,  and  find  a  broader  field  of  action. 
Tennessee  was  the  land  of  promise  which  attracted  his 
attention,  and  accompanied  by  his  mother,  who  justly 
deserved  the  affection  he  bestowed  upon  her,  he  reached 
Greenville  in  1826. 

Young,  aspiring,  and  ambitious,  he  was  not  long  in 
making  friends,  and  among  them  a  beautiful  girl  evinced 
her  appreciation  of  his  character,  by  becoming  his  wife. 
Eliza  McCardle  was  the  only  daughter  of  a  widow,  whose 
father  had  been  dead  many  years,  and  whose  life  had 
been  spent  in  her  mountain  home.  When  she  was  mar- 
ried, she  had  just  reached  her  seventeenth  year,  and  her 
husband  was  not  yet  twenty-one. 

Education  in  those  clays  did  not  comprehend  and 
embrace  the  scientific  accomplishments  it  does  now,  but 
a  naturally  gifted  mind,  endowed  with  much  common 
sense,  received  a  broad  basis  for  future  development. 
She  was  well  versed  in  the  usual  branches  of  instruc- 
(546) 


-"-^*tyj.ciaurtr« 


HER    ASSISTANCE    TO    HER    HUSBAND.  547 

tion,  and  possessed,  in  an  extraordinary  degree,  that 
beauty  of  face  and  form  which  rendered  her  mother  one 
of  the  most  beautiful  of  women. 

It  is  a  mistaken  idea  that  she  taught  her  husband  his 
letters ;  for  in  the  dim  shadows  of  the  workshop  at 
Raleigh,  after  the  toil  of  the  day  was  complete,  he  had 
mastered  the  alphabet  and  made  himself  generally  ac- 
quainted with  the  construction  of  words  and  sentences. 
The  incentiv^e  to  acquire  mental  attainment  was  cer- 
tainly enhanced  when  he  felt  the  superiority  of  her  ac- 
quirements, and  from  that  time  his  heroic  nature  began 
to  discover  itself.  In  the  silent  watches  of  the  night, 
while  sleep  rested  upon  the  village,  the  youthful  couple 
studied  together ;  she  ofttimes  reading  as  he  completed 
the  weary  task  before  him,  oftener  still  bending  over 
him  to  ofuide  his  hand  in  writine. 

He  never  had  the  benefit  of  one  day's  school  routine 
in  his  life,  yet  he  acquired  by  perseverance  the  benefits 
denied  by  poverty.  What  a  contemplation  it  must  have 
been  to  those  mothers  who  watched  over  their  children 
as  they  struggled  together!  Let  time  in  its  flight  trans- 
port us  back  to  those  years,  and  see  what  a  scene  was 
being  then  enacted  there.  In  that  obscure  village  in  the 
mountains,  three  strong,  yet  tender-hearted  women 
watched  over  and  cherished  the  buddinp-  ofenius  of  the 
future  statesman.  History,  in  preserving  its  record  of 
the  life  and  services  of  the  seventeenth  President  of 
the  United  States,  rears  to  them  a  noble  tribute  of  their 
faithfulness. 


54S  ELIZA    m'CARDLE    JOHNSON. 

The  young  wife,  thrifty  and  industrious  all  day, 
worked  patiently  and  hopefully  as  night  brought  her 
pupil  again  to  his  studies,  and  punctually  completed 
her  womanly  duties  that  she  might  be  ready  for  the 
never-varying  rule  of  their  lives.  Much  of  latent 
powers  he  owed  to  her  indefatigable  zeal  and  encour- 
agement, and  he  never  forgot  those  evening  hours  years 
aofo  when  the  scintillations  of  natural  sfenius  first  beo^an 
to  dawn,  which  ultimately  converted  the  tailor  boy  into 
the  Senator,  and  subsequendy  into  the  President  of  his 
country. 

Year  after  year  she  watched  him  as  he  rose  step  by 
step,  and  always  as  willing  and  earnest  as  when  in  life's 
bright  morn  they  were  married. 

The  later  years  of  Mrs.  Johnson's  life  were  crowned 
with  the  honors  her  husband's  successes  had  won,  but 
the  stor}^  of  her  younger  days  is  fraught  with  most  in- 
terest to  all  who  can  appreciate  true  worth  and  genuine 
greatness  of  soul. 

In  her  girlhood  she  was  the  purest  type  of  a  Southern 
beauty,  and  like  her  mother  was  very  graceful  and  agree- 
able in  her  manners.  I  have  heard  persons  say  that  her 
mother  was  the  handsomest  lady  in  all  that  region  of  coun- 
try, and  her  old  neighbors  stoutly  maintained  that  Mrs. 
Johnson  was  the  image  of  her.  Her  extreme  modesty 
denied  the  imputation  that  she  was  the  belle  of  the 
county. 

While  their  means  increased  as  time  passed,  and  the 
caroling  of   their  little  children  gladdened  their  home. 


HER    HOME    LIFE.  549 

I\Ir.  Johnson  received  his  first  substantial  proof  of  the 
confidence  of  the  community  in  which  he  Hved  in  his 
election  as  "alderman."  How  intense  must  have  been 
the  joy  of  the  good  wife  as  she  saw  her  pupil  progressing 
in  a  career  he  was  so  well  fitted  to  occupy ! 

At  this  time  their  residence  was  situated  on  a  hill  just 
out  of  Greenville,  simple  and  plain  in  its  surroundings, 
yet  the  resort  of  the  young  people  of  the  village.  The 
college  boys,  as  they  passed  to  and  fro  on  errands, 
always  stopped  to  enjoy  a  chat  with  their  "  Demos- 
thenes," and  were  ever  welcomed  by  the  genial,  frank 
manners  of  the  frentle  wife. 

Fresh  laurels  crowned  the  alderman's  brow  when  he 
was  chosen  Mayor,  and  for  three  terms  he  filled  the  po- 
sition with  credit,  winning  for  himself  an  enviable  reputa- 
tion for  honest  deeds  and  correct  principles. 

Little  has  been  written  of  Mrs.  Johnson,  mainly  from 
the  fact  that  she  always  opposed  any  publicity  being 
given  to  her  private  life,  and  from  the  reluctance  of  her 
friends  to  pain  her  by  acceding  to  the  oft-repeated  re- 
quests of  persons  for  sketches  of  her.  In  a  conversa- 
tion held  with  her  while  she  was  in  the  White  House, 
she  remarked  "  that  her  Hfe  had  been  spent  at  home, 
caring  for  her  children,  and  practising  the  economy  ren- 
dered necessary  by  her  husband's  small  fortune." 

An  impartial  writer  cannot  be  swayed  by  such  natural 
and  creditable  sentiments,  nor  is  it  just  that  a  woman 
who  was  the  means  of  advancing  her  husband's  interests 
so  materially,  and  who  occupied    the  position  she  did, 


550  ELIZA    M  CARDLE    JOHNSON. 

should  be  silently  passed  by.  She  deserved,  as  she  re- 
ceived from  all  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  know  her, 
the  highest  encomiums;  for  by  her  unwearying  efforts 
she  was  a  stepping-stone  to  her  husband.  Patient  and 
forbearing  she  was  universally  liked,  and  if  she  had  an 
enemy  it  was  from  no  fault  of  hers,  nor  did  she  number 
any  among  the  acquaintances  of  a  life-time. 

Like  Mr.  Johnson  she  had  very  few  living  relatives ; 
her  children  having  neither  aunts  nor  uncles,  and  being 
deprived  of  both  grandmothers  while  they  still  were 
young.  Mrs.  Johnson's  mother  died  in  April,  1854,  and 
his  parent  lived  until  February,  1856;  each  having  been 
the  object  of  his  tenderest  care,  and  living  to  see  him 
holding  the  highest  position  his  native  State  could  bestow. 
There  was  not  two  years'  difference  in  the  deaths  of  these 
two  rnothers,  and  it  was  the  unspeakable  happiness  of 
their  children  to  know  that  as  the  wick  burned  low,  and 
the  lamp  of  time  went  out,  all  that  peace  and  plenty 
could  devise  for  their  happiness  they  received,  and  their 
departure  from  earth  was  rendered  calmly  serene  by  the 
assurance  that  their  work  was  well  done  and  finished. 

When  the  civil  war,  which  snapped  the  cords  of  so 
many  old  persons'  lives  and  hurried  them  to  premature 
graves,  sounded  its  dread  tocsin  through  East  Tennes- 
see, it  was  a  source  of  mournful  satisfaction  to  know 
that  those  two  aged  mothers  lay  unconscious  of  the  ap- 
proaching conflict  which  was  to  bathe  that  section  of  the 
State  in  blood.  The  tall  grass  grew  unharmed,  and 
no  impious  hand  desecrated  the  resting-place  of  de- 
parted virtue. 


HER    RESIDENCE    IN    GREENVILLE.  55 1 

During  the  meetings  of  the  Legislature  to  which  Mr. 
Johnson  was  repeatedly  called,  Mrs.  Johnson  remained 
at  Greenville;  and  while  he  sought  honors  and  support 
away  from  home,  she  found  compensation  for  his  pro- 
longed absence  in  the  knowledge  that  she  best  pro- 
moted his  interest  when  she  lived  within  their  still 
slender  means.  Her  children  received  the  benefit  of 
her  ripe,  matured  experience,  until  one  by  one  they  left 
their  home;  two  to  marry  and  dwell  near  her,  and  the 
youngest  to  be  a  comfort  in  her  days  of  suffering.  Her 
home  in  Greenville  was  thus  described  in  1865:  "Just 
clown  there,  at  the  base  of  this  hill,  stands  a  small  brick 
building  with  a  back  porch,  and  around  it  the  necessary 
fixtures.  It  stands  on  the  corner  of  the  square,  near 
where  the  mill-race  passes  under  the  street  on  its  way 
down  to  the  little  mill.  That  is  the  first  house  Andrew- 
Johnson  ever  owned.  It  now  belongs  to  another  person. 
Almost  directly  opposite  the  mill,  whose  large  wheel  is 
still  moving,  but  whose  motion  is  scarcely  perceptible, 
you  will  see  a  rather  humble,  old-fashioned-looking,  two- 
story  brick  house,  standing  near  the  south  end  of  Main 
street.  It  has  but  one  entrance  from  the  street.  In 
front  of  it  stand  three  or  four  small  shade-trees.  The; 
fences  of  the  lot  and  windows  of  the  house  show  evi- 
dent signs  of  dilapidation,  the  consequences  of  rebellion 
and  of  rebel  rule.  Like  many  other  windows  in  the 
South,  a  number  of  panes  of  glass  are  broken  out  and 
their  places  supplied  with  paper.  Glass  could  not  be 
obtained  in  the  Confederacy.     As   you   pass  along   the 


552  ELIZA    M  CARDLE    JOHNSON. 

pavement  on  Main  street,  by  looking  into  the  lot  you 
will  see  several  young  apple  trees,  and  in  the  spaces  be- 
tween two  of  them  are  potatoes  growing.  In  the  rear 
of  the  kitchen  stands  a  small  aspen  shade-tree,  and  down 
there  in  the  lower  end  of  the  lot  is  a  grape-vine  trained 
upon  a  trellis,  forming  a  pleasant  bowser.  Scattered 
over  the  lot  are  a  number  of  rose,  currant,  and  goose- 
berry bushes.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  lot,  and  just 
outside,  stand  two  large  weeping  willows,  and  undeh 
their  shade  is  a  very  beautiful  spring.  This  is  the  resi- 
dence of  Andrew  Johnson,  President  of  the  United 
States.  Up  the  street  stands  his  former  tailor  shop, 
with  the  old  sign  still  on  it.  And  in  an  old  store-room 
up  the  street  are  the  remains  of  his  library.  At  present, 
it  consists  principally  of  law  books  and  public  documents, 
most  of  his  valuable  books  having  been  destroyed  by 
the  rebel  soldiers," 

In  the  spring  of  "'6i,"  Mrs,  Johnson  spent  two 
months  in  Washington  with  her  husband,  then  a  Senator, 
but  failing  health  compelled  her  early  return  to  Tennes- 
see, Long  and  stormy  were  the  seasons  which  passed 
before  she  again  met  Mr.  Johnson,  and  how  changed 
were  all  things  when  they  resumed  the  broken  thread 
of  separation,  after  an  interval  of  nearly  two  years! 

At  her  home  quietly  attending  to  the  duties  of  life, 
and  cheered  by  the  frequent  visits  of  her  children,  she 
was  startled  one  bright  morning  by  the  following  sum- 
mons : 


HER    TRIALS    DURING    THE    WAR.  553 

"  Head-quarters  Department  of  East  Tennessee,  "l 
"Office  Provost-Marshal,  April  24/'//,  1S62.     j 

"Mrs.  Andrew  Johnson,  Greenville: 

"  Dear  Madam  : — By  INIajor-General  E.  Kirby  Smith 
I  am  directed  to  respectfully  require  that  you  and  your 
family  pass  beyond  the  Confederate  States'  line  (through 
Nashville,  if  you  please)  in  thirty-six  hours  from  this 
date. 

"  Passports  will  be  granted  you  at  this  office. 
"Very  respectfully, 

"W.  M.  Churciiwell, 

"  Colonel  and  Provost-Marshal.'* 

This  was  an  impossibility,  both  on  account  of  her  very 
jDoor  health,  and  the  unsettled  state  of  her  affairs.  Nor 
(lid  she  know  where  to  go  ;  rumors  reached  her  of  the 
murder  of  Mr.  Johnson  in  Kentucky,  and  again  at 
Nashville ;  then  again  she  would  hear  that  he  had  not 
left  Washington.  She  knew  not  what  to  do,  and  ac- 
cordingly wrote  to  the  authorities  for  more  time  to 
decide  on  some  definite  plan. 

The  military  movements  delayed  the  execution  of 
the  next  order  sent  her,  and  the  continued  illness  of 
Mrs.  Johnson  distressed  her  children,  who  knew  that  a 
chanoe  of  residence  would  sooner  or  later  become 
necessary.  All  the  summer  she  remained  in  Greenville, 
occasionally  visiting  her  daughters,  and  hoping  daily  to 
hear  of  her  husband.  September  came,  and  knowing 
she  would  be  compelled  to  leave  East  Tennessee,  she 
applied  to  the  authorities   for  permission    to   cross  the 


554  ELIZA    M  CARDLE    JOHNSON^ 

lines,  accompanied  by  her  children  and  her  son-in-law. 
Mr.  Stover. 

Finally,  after  numerous  endeavors,  the  cavalcade  set 
out.  A  few  miles  out  from  town  they  were  overtaken 
by  an  order  to  return. 

Reaching  Murfreesboro,  exhausted  and  weary  from 
the  long  trip,  the  litde  band  were  told  they  could  not 
go  through  the  lines.  The  Confederate  troops  occupied 
this  once  beautiful  town,  and  no  accommodations  were 
to  be  obtained.  Wanderincr  from  one  house  to  another 
after  the  long  walk  from  the  depot,  in  the  night-time, 
without  food  or  shelter,  Mrs.  Johnson  and  her  children 
despaired  of  securing  any  more  inviting  abode  than  the 
depot,  and  that  was  a  long  distance  from  the  centre  of 
the  town.  As  a  last  resort,  a  woman  was  requested  to 
share  her  home  with  the  tired  refugees,  and  she  con- 
sented with  the  understanding  that  in  the  morning  they 
would  depart.  Their  Union  sentiments  made  them 
obnoxious,  and  it  required  courage  to  show  them  hospi- 
tality. Next  day  they  returned  to  Tullahoma,  but  on 
arriving  there  received  a  telegram  to  retrace  their 
steps,  as  arrangements  had  been  made  for  their  pas- 
sage through  to  Nashville. 

A  former  friend  of  the  family  obtained  this  favor  for 
them,  and,  nothlne  daunted,  nlsfht  ao^aln  found  the  same 
band  at  Murfreesboro. 

No  effort  was  made  to  secure  lodgings,  all  preferring 
to  stay  on  the  cars,  rather  than  undertake  the  expe- 
riences of  the  previous  night. 


THROUGH    THE    REBEL    LINES.  555 

The  eating-house  near  by  was  vacant,  and  into  this 
Colonel  Stover  conducted  the  tired  party.  Without  fire 
or  food,  or  any  kind  of  beds  or  seats,  they  determined 
to  stay  as  best  they  could ;  and  but  for  the  thoughtful, 
motherly  care  of  Mrs.  Johnson,  it  would  have  been  a 
night  of  horrors.  She  had  provided  herself  with  candles 
and  matches  before  starting,  and  the  remnants  of  an  old 
lunch  satisfied  the  hunger  of  the  litde  ones,  and  rendered 
less  cheerless  their  lonely  abode. 

Thus,  from  one  trouble  to  another,  subject  to  the  com- 
mands of  military  rulers,  liable  to  be  arrested  for  the 
slightest  offence,  and  ofttimes  insulted  by  the  rabble, 
Mrs.  Johnson  and  her  children  performed  the  perilous 
journey  from  Greenville  to  Nashville.  Few  who  were 
not  actual  participators  in  the  civil  war  can  form  an  esti- 
mate of  the  trials  of  this  noble  woman.  Invalid  as  she 
was,  she  yet  endured  exposure  and  anxiety,  and  passed 
through  the  extended  lines  of  hostile  armies,  never 
uttering  a  hasty  word  or  by  her  looks  betraying  in  the 
least  decrree  her  harrowed  feelinofs.  Wherever  she 
passed  she  won  kind  words  and  hearty  prayers  for  a  safe 
journey,  and  is  remembered  by  friend  and  foe  as  a  lady 
of  benign  countenance  and  sweet,  winning  manners. 

The  following  day  Mrs.  Johnson  received  the  follow- 
ing note : 

"MuRFREESBORO,  October  Mth,  1862. 

"Mrs.  Andrew  Johnson: — General  Forrest  sends  a 
flag  of  truce  to  Nashville  to-morrow  morning,  and  he 
wishes  you  and  your  party  to  make  your  arrangements  to 
go  down  with  the  flag,  at  seven  o'clock  a  m.,  to-morrow- 


556  ELIZA    m'caKDLE    JUHN;;C  iM. 

"The  General  regrets  that  he  has  no  transportation 
for  you  ;  he  will  send  a  two-horse  wagon  to  carry  your 
baggage,  etc.  By  remaining  until  to-morrow,  you  can 
go  the  direct  route  to  Nashville  ;  by  going  previous  to 
that  time,  the  route  would  be  necessarily  circuitous. 

Respectfully, 

"IsHAM  G.  Harris." 

A  diary  kept  by  a  citizen  of  Nashville  at  this  time 
contains  the  following: 

"  Quite  a  sensation  has  been  produced  by  the  arrival 
in  Nashville  of  Governor  Johnson's  family,  after  incur- 
ring and  escaping  nuiuerous  perils  while  making  their 
exodus  from  East  Tennessee.  The  male  members  of 
the  family  were  in  danger  of  being  hung  on  more  than 
one  occasion.  They  left  Bristol  in  the  extreme  north- 
eastern section  of  the  State,  on  the  Virginia  line,  by  per- 
mission  of  the  rebel  War  Department,  accompanied  by 
a  small  escort.  Wherever  it  became  known  on  the  rail- 
road route  that  Andrew  Johnson's  family  were  on  the 
train,  the  impertinent  cuiiosity  of  some  rebels  was  only 
equalled  by  the  clamor  of  others  for  some  physical 
demonstration  on  Johnson's  sons.  Arriving  at  Mur- 
freesboro,  they  were  met  by  General  Forrest  and  his 
force.  Forrest  refused  to  allow  them  to  proceed,  and 
they  were  detained  some  time,  until  Isham  G.  Harris  and 
Andrew  Ewing,  noted  rebels,  telegraphed  to  Richmond, 
and  obtained  peremptory  orders  allowing  them  to  pro- 
ceed.    The  great  joy  at  the   reunion  of  this  long  and 


DEATH    OF    HER    OLDEST    SON.  557 

sorrowfully  separated  family  may  be  imagined.  I  will 
not  attempt  to  describe  it.  Even  the  Governor's  Roman 
firmness  was  overcome,  and  he  wept  tears  of  thankful- 
ness at  this  merciful  deliverance  of  his  beloved  ones 
from  the  hands  of  their  unpitying  persecutors." 

Nashville  and  comparative  quiet  were  at  last  reached, 
and  the  long  separated  family  hoped  their  trials  were 
over.  Mrs.  Johnson  had  exhausted  her  strength,  and 
for  many  months  kept  her  room,  too  feeble  to  venture 
out.  But  her  little  grandchildren  enjoyed  the  freedom 
of  play  once  more,  and  their  happy  faces  are  remem- 
bered by  strangers  and  friends  who  watched  them  in 
their  gambols  about  the  capital. 

By-and-by  Mrs.  Patterson  joined  the  family  in  the 
safe  asylum  they  had  found  in  Nashville,  and  young  and 
old  were  happy  in  the  reunion.  But  trouble,  never  far 
from  Mrs.  Johnson,  came  very  near  in  the  cruel  death 
of  her  eldest  son.  Not  long  after  receiving  his  diploma 
as  physician,  he  was  appointed  a  surgeon  in  the  First 
Tennessee  Infantry. 

One  bright  spring  morning,  he  started  on  his  rounds 
of  professional  duty.  In  the  exuberance  of  health,  youth, 
and  spirits,  he  sprang  upon  the  horse  of  a  brother  offi- 
cer. He  had  gone  but  a  short  distance,  when  the  high- 
mettled  creature  reared  upon  its  hind  feet  suddenly;  the 
young  man  was  thrown  backward,  and  falling  upon  the 
frozen  earth,  was  instantly  killed.  The  concussion  frac- 
tured his  skull.  Mrs.  Johnson  grieved  for  this  son  as 
did  Jacob  for  his   beloved   Joseph,   and    not   only   the 


558  ELIZA    m'cARDLE   JOHNSON. 

mother,  but  the  whole  family,  mourned  with  unusual 
poignancy  his  untimely  death.  Any  mention  of  "  Char- 
lie's" name  for  years  after  brought  the  hot  tears  to  their 
eyes,  and  a  sadness,  hard  to  dispel,  gathered  about  their 
lips,  when  some  familiar  object  recalled  their  loved  and 
early  lost  one. 

The  convention,  in  1864,  nominated  Andrew  Johnson, 
then  Military  Governor,  for  the  Vice-Presidency,  on  the 
ticket  with  Mr.  Lincoln.  In  March,  1865,  Mr.  Johnson 
left  his  family  in  Nashville  and  went  on  to  Washington. 
It  was  their  intention  to  vacate  the  house  then  occupied 
by  their  family  and  remove  to  their  home  in  Greenville, 
but  the  events  of  the  comincr  month  caused  them  to  form 
Other  plans.  President  Lincoln  was  assassinated  the 
14th  of  April,  and  the  Vice-President  was  immediately 
sworn  into  office.  A  telegraphic  notice  in  the  Nashville 
papers  the  next  morning  contained  the  following: 

"The  Vice-President  has  already  assumed  the  au- 
thority which  the  Constitution  devolves  upon  him,  and 
w^e  feel  doubly  assured  that  he  will  so  conduct  himself 
in  his  high  office  as  to  merit  the  affection  and  applause 
of  his  countrymen."  As  this  was  the  first  murder  of 
a  ruler  in  the  experience  of  the  Republic,  it  will  ever 
occupy  a  prominent  place  in  the  history  of  America, 
and,  involving  as  it  did  the  result  of  civil  war,  will  live  a 
silent  monitor  to  all  democratic  countries.  Had  the  con- 
spiracy, which  had  been  carefully  planned,  been  suc- 
cessfully executed,  the  Government  would  have  been 
paralyzed.      Even    as   it  was,  and  there  was  but  one 


MR.    JOHNSONS   ESCAPE.  559 

death,  when  many  others  were  meditated,  the  shock  was 
terrible  and  lasting.  It  was  a  humiliating  calamity  to 
our  free  government,  and  a  source  of  national  sorrow 
and  mortification.  Men  and  women,  reared  to  idealize 
rather  than  ponder  the  principles  of  the  system 
under  which  they  had  lived  ;  educated  to  give  a  ready 
assent  to  the  hero  worship  of  the  signers  of  the 
Declaration,  and  voluntary  adoration  to  the  First 
General  of  the  army,  and  the  first  President,  rudely 
awakened  from  their  dream  of  a  perfect  Government, 
became  discouraged  and  dismayed  at  the  unexpected, 
never  to  be  thought  of,  murder  of  a  President.  It  may 
not  be  amiss  to  give  a  few  facts  in  connection  with  this 
unhappy  affair,  relative  to  the  husband  of  Mrs,  Johnson, 
which,  affecting  her  interests  materially,  are  not  out  of 
place  in  this  sketch  of  her  life. 

After  her  arrival  in  Washington,  a  beautifully  bound 
album,  containinor  the  letters  of  the  Wisconsin  State 
Historical  Society,  to  Senator  Doolittle,  and  the  replies 
of  himself  and  Ex-Governor  Farwell,  was  presented  to 
her.  The  letters  were  inscribed  by  an  expert  penman, 
and  are  prized  by  the  family  as  a  truthful  account  of 
Mr.  Johnson's  narrow  escape  from  death,  together 
with  the  main  incidents  of  the  assassination  conspiracy. 

The  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin,  through  Hon. 
L.  C.  Draper,  its  Secretary,  wrote  to  Senator  J.  R.  Doo- 
little for  a  full  account  of  the  circumstances;  to  which 
he  replied,  that  "by  the  sagacity,  presence  of  mind, 
courage,  and  devotion   of  Governor  Farwell,  our  own 


560  ELIZA    m'cARDLE    JOHNSON. 

distinguished  fellow-citizen,  Mr.  Johnson  was  apprised 
of  his  danger,  and  his  life  secured,  if  not  absolutely 
saved  from  destruction;"  "and  it  is  a  matter  of  con- 
gratulation to  ourselves  and  our  State  that  a  former 
Governor  of  Wisconsin  was  successfully  efficient  in 
securing  the  life  of  the  nation's  Chief  Mao;istrate." 

Governor  Farwell's  letter,  in  reply  to  the  request  of 
the  Society,  through  Senator  Doolittle,  is  perhaps  the 
most  authentic  statement  ever  made  in  regard  to  the 
unfortunate  affair.     It  is  as  follows: 

"  Washington,  Febr7iajy  St/i,  1866. 

"  Hon.  James  R.  Doolittle,  United  States  Senate 

"Dear  Sir:  I  have  received  your  favor  of  the  22d 
lilt.,  requesting,  on  behalf  of  the  Wisconsin  State  His- 
torical Society,  a  statement  of  my  connection  with  the 
occurrences  that  took  place  in  this  city  on  the  night  of 
the  assassination  of  President  Lincoln.  It  is  a  mournful 
task  to  recall  the  terrible  scenes  that  I  then  witnessed. 
Yet  in  order  that  the  expressed  wishes  of  that  Society, 
of  which  from  the  time  of  Its  formation  I  have  been  a 
member,  and  in  which  I  have  always  taken  a  deep 
interest,  may  be  gratified,  and  a  truthful  account  of 
those  events,  so  far  as  I  witnessed  them,  may  find  its 
way  Into  history,  I  comply  with  the  request. 

"At  the  time  of  the  assassination  of  President  Lin- 
coln, I  was  boarding  at  the  Kirkwood  House,  my  family 
being  then  in  Wisconsin.  The  Vice-President  had 
rooms,  and  was  boarding  at  the  same  place,  and  I  there 


GOVERNOR  FARWELL's    LEITER.  56 1 

came  to  know   him,  and  occasionally  passed  an  evening 
in  his  room. 

"Early  in  the  evening  of  April  i4Lh,  1865,  I  called 
to  see  Mr.  J.  B.  Crosby,  of  Massachusetts,  and  found 
that  he  had  but  a  short  time  to  stay  and  was  very  de- 
sirous of  seeing  the  President  before  his  return.  Hav- 
ing noticed  in  the  papers  a  statement  that  Mr.  Lincoln 
was  expected  to  be  present  at  Ford's  Theatre  on  that 
evening,  to  witness  the  play  entitled  '  Our  American 
Cousin,'  we  concluded  to  go  thither  for  the  express 
purpose  of  seeing  him.  This  we  did,  and  procured 
seats  having  the  President's  box  in  full  view  on  our 
right.  When  the  fatal  shot  was  fired,  we  involunta 
rily  turned  our  eyes  to  the  box  from  whicli  the  sound 
proceeded,  and  at  the  same  instant  the  horrible  visioyi 
of  J.  Wilkes  Booth  flashed  upon  my  eyes,  brandishin;^^ 
a  knife,  and  jumping  from  the  President's  box  repeat- 
ing the  words,  *  Sic  Semper  Tyrannis."  I  had  scarcely 
seen  and  heard  him  before  he  had  vanished  from  the 
stage.  As  the  President  fell,  and  the  cry  ran  through 
the  house  that  he  was  assassinated,  it  flashed  across  my 
mind  that  there  was  a  conspiracy  being  consummated 
to  take  the  lives  of  the  leadine  officers  of  the  Govern- 
ment,  which  would  include  that  of  Mr.  Johnson.  The 
cause  of  this  suspicion  and  of  my  alarm  for  the  safety 
of  Mr.  Johnson  was,  probably,  the  fact  of  my  having 
read  in  some  newspaper  the  article  copied  from  the 
Selma   (Ala.)  Despatch,  being  an  offer  by  some  fiendish 

rebel   to   aid    in    contributintr  a    million  of  dollars  for 
36 


562  ELIZA    m'cARDLE    JOHNSON. 

procurino-    the   assassination   of   Lincoln,   Johnson,    and 
Seward. 

"While  some  seemed  paralyzed  by  the  boldness  of 
the  deed,  and  others  intent  upon  knowing  how  seriously 
the  President  was  injured,  I  rushed  from  the  theatre,  and 
ran  with  all  possible  speed  to  the  Kirkwood  House,  to 
apprise  Mr.  Johnson  of  the  impending  danger,  impelled 
by  a  fear  that  it  might  even  then  be  too  late.  Passing 
Mr.  Spencer,  one  of  the  clerks  of  the  hotel,  who  was 
standing  just  outside  the  door,  I  said  to  him,  '  Place  a 
guard  at  the  door:  President  Lincoln  is  murdered; '  and 
to  Mr.  Jr:nes,  another  clerk,  who  was  at  the  office  desk 
as  I  Uiirried  by — 'Guard  the  stairway  and  Governor 
John';on's  room:  Mr.  Lincoln  is  assassinated;'  and  then 
darting  up  to  Mr.  Johnson's  room,  No.  68,  I  knocked, 
but  hearinor  no  movement,  I  knocked  acrain,  and  called 
out  with  the  loudest  voice  that  I  could  command,  'Gov- 
ernor Johnson,  if  you  are  in  this  room  I  must  see  you.' 
In  a  moment  I  heard  him  sprincr  from  his  bed,  and  ex- 
claim,  'Farwell,  is  that  you  ?  '  '  Yes,  let  me  in,'  I  replied. 
The  door  opened,  I  passed  in,  locked  it,  and  told  him 
the  terrible  news,  which  for  a  time  overwhelmed  us  both, 
and  grasping  hands,  we  fell  upon  each  other  as  if  for 
mutual  support.  But  it  was  only  for  a  moment.  While 
every  sound  suggested  the  stealthy  tread  of  a  conspirator, 
and  every  corner  of  the  chamber  a  lurking  place,  )c;t 
Mr.  Johnson,  without  expressing  any  apprehension  for 
his  own  safety,  and  with  that  promptness  and  energy 
which  has  always  characterized  him,  at  once  deliberated 


THE    ASSASSINATION    OF    LINCOLN.  563 

upon  the  proper  course  to  meet  the  emergency.  But 
the  moment  of  danger  had  passed.  The  officers  of  the 
hotel,  as  requested  by  me,  had  s-tationed  guards,  who  in 
a  short  tune  were  released  by  Secretary  Stanton.  Soon 
many  personal  friends  of  Mr,  Johnson  arrived,  anxiously 
inquiring  for  his  safety.  In  the  meantime,  the  news  of 
the  murderous  assault  upon  Secretary  Seward  and  h'  •■ 
son  Frederick  had  reached  us,  and  justified  our  fears  as 
to  the  general  purpose  of  the  conspirators.  Mr.  John- 
son was  desirous  of  knowinfj  the  real  condition  of  the 
President  and  Mr.  Seward,  and  requested  me  to  go  and 
see  them  personally,  and  not  to  credit  any  story  or  rumor 
that  might  be  flying  about  the  city.  This  was  no  easy 
task.  Distrust  and  horror  seemed  to  fill  every  mind. 
The  very  atmosphere  was  burdened  with  stories  of  dark 
conspiracies  and  bloody  deeds.  Thousands  of  excited 
citizens,  soldiers,  and  guards,  blocked  up  every  avenue- 
leading  to  Mr.  Peterson's  house.  No.  453  Tenth  Street, 
to  which  the  President  had  been  carried,  and  in  which  he 
was  dying.  None  but  prominent  citizens,  either  known 
to  the  officers  of  the  guard,  or  who  could  be  generally 
vouched  for,  were  allowed  to  pass,  and  it  was  with  the 
utmost  difficulty  that  I  succeeded  in  working  my  way 
through  the  crowd  and  past  the  guards  to  the  house, 
and  then  into  the  room  in  which  the  President  had  been 
placed.  The  news  was  all  too  true.  There  he  lay, 
evidently  in  the  agonies  of  death,  his  medical  attendants 
doinor  all  that  human  zeal  or  skill  could  devise,  and 
many  of  his   friends   had  gathered   about  him,  some  iit 


564  KI.IZA    M  CARDLK    JOHNSON, 

tears.  Turning  away  from  this  sad  sight,  I  worked  my 
way  to  the  house  of  Secretary  Seward,  and  there,  too,  I 
found  that  the  villains  had  done  their  work,  I  then 
returned  and  reported  to  Mr.  Johnson  the  disastrous 
doings  of  the  conspirators.  In  a  short  time  Mr.  Johnson 
resolved  to  see  the  President  himself  His  friends 
thought  he  ought  not  to  leave  the  house  when  there 
was  so  much  excitement  in  the  city,  and  when  the  extent 
of  the  conspiracy  was  unknown.  President  Lincoln  had 
just  been  shot  in  the  presence  of  a  crowded  assembly, 
and  his  assassin  had  escaped.  Secretary  Seward  had 
been  stabbed  in  his  chamber,  and  the  minion  had  fled. 
But  he  determined  to  go.  Major  James  R.  O'Beirne, 
commanding  the  Provost  Guard,  desired  to  send  a  de- 
tachment of  troops  with  him,  but  he  declined  the  offer, 
and,  buttoning  up  his  coat,  and  pulling  his  hat  well 
down,  he  requested  me  to  accompany  him  and  the 
Major  to  lead  the  way,  and  thus  we  went  through  the 
multitude  that  crowded  the  streets  and  filled  the  pas- 
sage-way, till  we  joined  the  sad  circle  of  friends  who 
were  grouped  around  the  bedside  of  the  dying  Presi- 
dent. It  is  unnecessary  to  add  anything  more  to  this 
account  of  my  connection  with  an  event  which  forms, 
with  the  rebellion  plot,  the  darkest  chapter  in  our  coun- 
try's history. 

"  If  it  is  true,  as  regarded  by  many,  that  the  life  of 
President  Johnson  w^as  saved  by  the  timely  arrival  of 
citizens  at  the  Kirkwood,  at  the  risk  of  their  lives,  then 
•such  risk  was  properly,  and  so  far  as  I  am  concerned, 


A    TRIBUTE    TO    HEK    MEMORY,  565 

joyfully  incurred,  and  this  statement  may  be  worthy  of 
preservation.  Trusting-  that  this  may  meet  the  wishes 
of  the  Society  as  expressed  through  you, 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be, 
"  Respectfully, 

"  Your  obedient  servant, 

"  L.  J.  Farvvell." 

The  Washington  correspondent  of  the  Chicago  Re- 
publican thus  speaks  of  Mrs.  Johnson : 

"  Mrs.  Johnson,  a  confirmed  invalid,  has  never  ap- 
peared in  society  in  Washington,  Her  very  existence 
is  a  myth  to  almost  ever)^  one.  She  was  last  seen  at  a 
party  given  to  her  grandchildren.  She  was  seated  in 
one  of  the  Republican  Court  chairs,  a  dainty  affair  of 
satin  and  ebony.  She  did  not  rise  when  the  children 
or  old  guests  were  presented  to  her;  she  simply  said, 
*  My  dears,  I  am  an  invalid,'  and  her  sad,  pale  face  and 
sunken  eyes  fully  proved  the  expression.  Mrs.  Johnson 
looks  somewhat  older  than  the  President,  and  her  age 
does  exceed  his  by  a  few  swings  of  the  scythe  of  time. 
She  is  an  invalid  now,  but  an  observer  would  say,  con- 
templating her,  'A  noble  woman — God's  best  gift  to 
man.'  Perhaps  it  is  well  to  call  to  mind  at  this  time 
that  it  was  this  woman  who  taught  the  President  to 
read,  after  she  became  his  wife,  and  that  in  all  their 
earlier  years  she  was  his  counsellor,  assistant,  and  guide. 
None  but  a  wise  and  good  mother  could  have  reared 
such  dauijhters   as    Mrs.   Patterson    and    Mrs.  Stover. 


566  ELIZA    m'CARDLF.    JOHNSON. 

When  Mrs.  Senator  Patterson  found  herself  '  the  first 
lady  in  the  land,"  she  made  this  remark,  which  has  been 
the  key-note  of  the  feminine  department  of  the  White 
House  from  that  day  to  the  present  time:  'We  are 
plain  people,  from  the  mountains  of  Tennessee,  called 
here  for  a  short  time  by  a  national  calamity.  I  trust 
too  much  will  not  be  expected  of  us.'  When  Anna 
Surratt  threw  herself  prostrate  upon  the  floor  of  one  of 
the  ante-rooms  of  the  W^hite  House,  beq-orincr  to  see 
Mrs.  Patterson,  she  said  :  '  Tell  the  girl  she  has  my  sym- 
pathy, my  tears,  but  I  have  no  more  right  to  speak  than 
the  servants  of  the  White  House.'  When  the  '  pardon 
brokers'  trailed  their  slimy  lengths  everywhere  about 
the  Mansion,  they  never  dared  to  cross  a  certain  en- 
chanted pathway;  and  the  face  of  any  lobbjist  set  in 
this  direction  has  always  brought  up  in  the  end  against 
a  stone  wall." 

Mrs.  Johnson  shared  as  little  as  possible  in  the  honors 
accorded  her  family,  as  well  after  as  during  their  stay  in 
the  White  House,  and  gladly  turned  her  face  homew'ard, 
to  find  rest  and  repose  so  necessary  to  her  feeble  con- 
dition. 

Once  more  quietly  established  at  home,  she  anticipated 
renewed  happiness  in  the  presence  of  her  reunited 
family,  and  reasonably  hoped  to  have  much  happiness 
in  the  future. 

Death  hovered  near  her  when  least  expected,  and  one 
night,  as  the  servant  entered  the  room  of  her  son  (Col. 
Robert  Johnson),  he  was  discovered  in  a  dying  condi-. 


DEATH    OF    UER    SON.  567 

tion,  and  in  an  unconscious  state  passed  from  earth. 
From  a  tear-stained  letter  I  gather  these  sad  particu- 
lars. "  He  was  well  and  on  the  street  at  five  o'clock, 
and  at  dusk,  as  the  servant  w^nt  as  usual  to  li'dit  his 
lamp,  she  discovered  that  he  was  in  a  deep  sleep.  He 
was  never  aroused  from  it.  All  the  physicians  of  the 
village  were  immediately  called  in,  but  alas!  too  late  to 
do  any  good.  He  breathed  his  last  at  half-past  eleven 
that  night,  without  a  single  groan  or  struggle. 

"  I  do  not  suppose  he  ever  made  an  enemy  in  his  life. 
He  was  certainly  the  most  popular  boy  ever  raised  in 
this  part  of  the  country,  and  continued  so  after  he  be- 
came a  man.  Oh,  if  he  could  only  have  spoken  one 
word  to  us  !  but  he  passed  into  the  tomb,  unconscious 
of  all  around  him.  He  was  buried  with  Masonic  honors, 
and  the  largest  funeral  ever  before  seen  in  this  villaire 
accomoanied  his  remains  to  the  efrave." 

After  seven  years  of  wanderings,  he  was  permitted  to 
accompany  his  parents  to  their  home,  and  to  die  sur- 
rounded by  the  friends  of  his  youth. 

Mrs.  Johnson  grieved  deeply  for  this  son  as  she  had 
done  for  his  brother.  She  lived  in  and  for  her  family,  and 
the  loss  of  any  one  dear  to  her  affected  her  seriously. 
Frail  in  health,  tried  by  anxiety  and  care  in  early  life, 
and  a  confirmed  sufferer  in  maturer  years,  she  became 
now  a  helpless  invalid ;  and  though  she  was  glad  to  be 
at  home  again,  pleased  to  see  the  kindly  faces  of  her  old 
neighbors  and  friends,  she  could  not  be  an  active  partic- 
ipator in  anything.     She  could  only  mourn  for  her  dead, 


568  ELIZA    m'caRDLE    JOHNSON. 

and  rect;ive  and  ^rive  comfort  to  those  about  her  in  her 
own  home.  The  world  saw  but  httle  more  of  her.  The 
sugreestion  at  this  time  that  she  would  live  lono^er  than  Mr. 
Johnson,  if  made  to  her,*Nvould  have  been  derided.  She 
had  little  thought  of  recovering  her  health  at  any  time, 
and  particularly  after  the  first  ten  years  of  her  invalidism. 
Subsequent  to  her  return,  and  the  death  of  Robert,  she 
ceased  to  entertain  the  wish  to  live  many  years,  for  she 
was  less  and  less  concerned  in  public  affairs,  now  that 
her  husband  had  retired,  and  was  likely  to  remain,  as  she 
thought,  in  private  life.  His  health  was  not  as  robust  as 
formerly,  and  during  the  summer  succeeding  his  return 
from  Washington,  he  w^as  stricken  with  cholera,  and  his 
life  was  for  a  time  despaired  of.  From  this  he  recovered, 
and  in  the  fall  he  was  again  participating  in  the  service 
of  redeeming  Tennessee  from  the  reconstruction  errors 
into  which  it  had  been  led  by  men  more  eager  for  place 
than  true  principle. 

In  1874  Mr.  Johnson  was  elected  to  the  Senate  to 
succeed  William  G.  Brownlow,  and  his  wife  saw  him  set 
out  again  for  Washington,  holding  the  same  position  he 
had  held  before  the  war.  She  rejoiced  in  the  ovation 
that  was  paid  him  ;  read  all  that  the  papers  said  of  him. 
and  was  pleased  that  his  career  was  not  over,  as  she  had 
at  one  time  supposed.  He  was  again  in  Greenville  in 
the  early  spring,  and  the  quiet  home-life  was  continued 
during  the  summer.  He  spent  much  time  from  home 
during  the  following  season,  making  speeches  through- 
out the  State,  and  giving  his  time  as  of  old  to  politics. 


I 


LAST    DAYS    OF    MR.    JOHNSON.  569 

As  a  defeated  candidate,  he  returned  to  Greenville  from 
Nashville  that  season,  and  Mrs.  Johnson  then  felt  that 
they  were  two  old  people  who  would  go  towards  the 
grave  together  quietly,  surrouTided  by  the  worldly  com- 
fort he  had  secured  tor  his  family.  This  was  not  to  be, 
however. 

It  was  given  him  to  enjoy  the  triumph  of  a  re- 
election to  the  Senate  for  the  long  term,  beginning  in 
December,  1874,  and  he  sat  out  the  extraordinary  ses- 
sion, and  made  his  last  speech  in  the  Louisiana  case. 
But  it  was  not  given  this  indomitable  patriot  long  to 
enjoy  the  dignity  with  ease,  which  his  own  party  and  his 
opponents  equally  wished.  He  only  lived  to  attend 
ihis  one  session,  and  the  opportunity  was  given  him  to 
make  one  speech  of  importance  to  himself  as  a  vindica- 
tion of  the  course  he  had  pursued  while  President.  It 
was  an  appeal  for  the  rights  of  a  population  whose  gov- 
ernment was  kept  from  them  by  military  force,  and  in  it 
he  threw  all  the  fervor  and  sincerity  of  a  man  who  was 
not  only  deeply  interested  in  the  subject,  but  who  was 
speaking  in  favor  of  a  policy  he  had  devised  and  upheld 
under  most  adverse  circumstances.  Naturally  enough, 
it  was  the  grandest  effort  of  his  life,  as  it  was  his  last. 
He  went  back  from  the  Senate  to  his  own  people,  and 
in  mid-summer  he  was  stricken  down  with  death.  On 
the  morning  of  the  31st  of  July,  1S75,  he  died  at  the  res- 
idence of  his  youngest  daughter  in  Carter  county.  Her 
home  was  not  far  distant  from  Greenville,  and  he 
thought  that,  though  ill  when  starting,  he  would  recuper- 


570  ELIZA    m'caRDLE   JOHNSON. 

ate  from  the  fatigue  of  the  ride,  and  recover  more 
speedily  in  th^e  country  than  in  town.  He  had  fre- 
quently said  to  his  physician  that  "he  did  not  think  he 
could  hold  out  more  than  a  year  or  two  longer,  as 
he  was  completely  worn  out."  Two  days  before  his  last 
illness,  he  made  a  similar  remark  to  his  wife,  who  was 
anxiously  noting  the  change  that  had  come  over  his 
spirits.  He  left  her  in  the  early  morning,  saying  good- 
bye, with  no  thought  of  a  longer  absence  than  a  week  or 
two.  The  next  morning  his  son  cind  daughter  were 
summoned  to  their  father's  bedside,  and  the  startling- 
news  was  br-oken  to  the  invalid  wife.  She  could  not  go 
to  him,  and  her  part  was  to  remain  alone  in  her  deserted 
house,  while  her  children  hastened  away.  When  they 
returned,  it  was  to  brincr  with  them  the  dead.  From 
tb.is  shock  she  did  not  recover.  At  no  time  had  she 
ever  entertained  the  slightest  thought  of  outliving  her 
husband,  and  now  that  this  event  had  occurred,  she  was 
stunned  and  bewildered.  She  lived  for  six  months,  and 
died  at  the  home  of  her  eldest  daughter  on  the  13th  of 
January,  1S76.  It  was  not  an  unlooked-for  event,  though 
her  children  had  become  so  accustomed  to  her  invalid- 
ism, that  they  could  not  realize  she  was  dying.  She  was 
always  quiet  and  gentle,  and  her  serenity  deceived  even 
those  who  w^atched  over  her  continually.  Very  patiently 
and  uncomplainingly  she  bore  her  part  of  sorrows,  and 
it  was  onlv  after  she  was  dead  that  others  realized  what 
a  sufferer  she  had  been.  Denied  every  other  means  of 
servinor  her  loved  ones,  she  cheered  them,  and  the  un- 


HER    GRAVE    IN    TENNESSEE.  57I 

selfishness  of  her  life  was  not  fully  understood  until  two 
white  hands  were  clasped  in  death,  and  her  sad  eyes 
were  closed  forever.  She  lived  for  others,  and  counted 
not  self,  and  was  rewarded  for  all  life's  trials  in  the  love 
she  was  capable  of  giving  to  others.  She  was  a  woman 
of  heroic  mould,  and  her  life-example  was  a  noble  one 
to  her  family,  to  her  friends,  and  to  the  w-orld. 

Mrs.  Jolinson  was  buried  beside  her  husband  in  the 
romantic  place  he  selected  many  years  ago.  At  the  time 
he  bought  the  property,  Mr.  Johnson  offered  to  pur- 
chase sufficient  ground  for  a  public  cemetery,  provided 
the  authorities  would  improve  it.  The  liberal  offer  was 
not  accepted,  and  for  a  time  there  w^ere  no  other  graves 
there.  The  monument  erected  by  the  children  is  a 
superb  structure,  standing  twenty-six  feet  high,  with  a 
base  that  is  nearly  ten  feet  square.  Granite  piers  rest 
on  each  of  the  graves,  lying  side  by  side,  over  which  is 
sprung  a  granite  arch,  and  upon  this  the  monument 
rests,  leaving  an  opening  under  the  arch,  through  r.hich 
are  seen  the  ir^aves.  The  structure  is  one  of  ^reat 
beauty,  with  its  four  funeral  urns  supported  on  pilasters, 
and  its  exquisite  carving.  Upon  the  front  of  the  arch 
is  carved  a  scroll,  representing  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  and  an  open  book  with  a  hard  resting 
upon  it,  representing  the  taking  of  the  oath  of  office. 
Over  the  apex  of  the  shaft — which  of  itself  is  thirteen 
feet  high — hangs  an  American  flag  in  graceful  folds,  and 
surmounting  the  whole  is  an  American  eatrle  with  out- 
stretched  wings.     On  the  28th  of  May,  1878,  ihii  monu- 


572  ELIZA    m'CARDI^    JOHNSON. 

ment  was  unveiled  with  the  most  imposing  ceremonies, 
and  for  the  first  time  the  simple  inscription  was  seen. 
It  contained  the  names,  ages,  and  death  dates  of  Mr, 
and  Mrs.  Johnson,  and  underneath  the  name  of  the 
seventeenth  President  is  the  motto : 

"  His  faith  in  the  people  never  wavered." 


'^'^^-^^^^C^J^^^^fc^^'^-.-^ 


xxiir. 

MARTHA    JOHNSON    PATTRRSON. 

The  resemblance  to  her  father  is  a  marked  attribute 
of  Mrs.  Patterson's  face;  a  reproduction,  though  moulded 
in  a  softer  cast,  of  his  distinct  and  strong  features  and 
expressive  eyes.  She  inherited  his  executive  ability,  his 
comprehensiveness,  and  many  of  his  characteristic  pecu- 
liarities. Her  countenance  denotes  strength,  r>nd  the 
organs  of  the  head  indicate  a  harmonious  and  perfect 
blending  with  the  finer  sentiments  of  the  heart. 

Eyes  large  and  full  discover  her  power  of  language, 
and  the  development  of  form,  color,  size  and  weight, 
attest  her  ability  to  judge  correctly  and  estimate  propor- 
tions unerringly.  Viewed  from  a  phrenological  stand- 
point, hers  is  a  remarkable  organism.  The  head  is  sym- 
metrical, tending  upward  from  the  brow,  indicating 
spirituality,  and  gently  sloping  to  the  ears  and  neck,  em- 
bracinor  in  its  outlines  the  faculties  of  firmness,  cren- 
erosity  and  benevolence. 

Never  led  off  by  persuasion  froni  what  her  judgment 
decides  correct,  she  rarely  makes  a  mistake  in  regard  to 
persons  or  places,  and  is  the  firm  advocate  of  those  less 
fortunate  than  herself.  Like  her  heart,  her  mouth  is 
large,  the  lips  partaking  more  of  the  intellectual  than 

(573) 


574  MARTHA    PA'ITERSON. 

of  the  sensual.  The  length,  prominence,  and  compres- 
sion of  the  upper  lip,  bespeaks  the  firmness  and  strength 
of  character  which  stamps  her,  wherever  she  goes,  a 
woman  of  rare  powers.  Adapting  herself  to  circum- 
stances, she  quickly  masters  any  situation  in  which  she 
is  placed,  and  controls  rather  than  follows  the  will  of 
others.  The  intellectual  lobe  is  large,  the  perceptive 
and  reflective  faculties  are  harmoniously  blended,  and 
withal  hers  is  an  educated  intellect,  with  an  available 
mind.  She  is  possessed  of  almost  sleepless  energy,  and 
her  sliofht,  frail  form  seems  knitted  for  endurance. 
Never  restless  or  impatient,  she  comprehends  at  a 
glance  her  position  and  requirements,  and  by  the  force 
of  her  v/ill  overcomes  obstacles  and  bears  up  with  forti- 
tude under  accumulated  trials. 

Reared  in  the  mountains  of  East  Tennessee,  her 
nature  is  untrammeled  by  artistic  contortions,  and  her 
manners  are  as  free  from  ostentation  as  are  the  feelings 
which  prompt  them.  The  eldest  of  five  children,  she 
was  to  her  mother  an  efficient  aid  in  the  care  of  her 
brothers  and  sister,  and  in  the  management  of  her  house. 
When  she  was  old  enough  to  attend  school,  it  was  her 
task  to  assist  in  keeping  house,  and  no  duty  was  neg- 
lected. It  has  been  remarked  that  she  never  had  time 
to  play.  While  other  school-girls  amused  themselves  in 
the  sports  of  the  season,  the  pale,  quiet  Martha  Johnson 
hastened  back  to  relieve  her  mother,  and  by  her  inde- 
fatigable industry  performed  the  many  deeds  so  grate- 
ful to  a  parent,  when  offered  by  a  child.     The   neigh- 


GIRLHOOD    AND    MARRIAGE.  575 

bors  called  her  a  strange,  silent  being,  Indifferent  to 
the  ordinary  amusements  of  the  young,  but  she  felt  her- 
self ennobled  by  the  work  she  daily  made  a  part  of  her 
life,  and  passed  these  younger  years  in  her  own  earnest 
way. 

She  was  placed  by  her  father,  who  was  then  a  mem- 
ber of  Congress,  at  school  in  Georgetown,  where  she 
remained  three  terms,  and  there  laid  the  foundation  of 
the  structure  which,  as  she  grows  older,  develops  her 
native  strength  of  mind. 

It  happened  that,  during  her  school-life  in  George- 
town, President  Polk,  of  Tennessee,  occupied  the  White 
House,  and  she  became  his  frequent  guest,  spending 
most  of  her  holidays  in  the  mansion  in  which,  later  in 
life,  she  was  to  preside.  Her  own  accounts  of  her 
sojourn  are  amusing,  deprecating  as  she  does  the  awk- 
ward conduct  of  the  timid,  bashful  girl,  in  the  stately 
residence,  through  which  the  voices  of  children  never 
resounded.  She  was  shy  and  distant,  and  the  stately 
kindness  of  the  hostess  could  not  overcome  her  shrink- 
ing reserve  ;  it  was  her  greatest  delight  then  to  observe 
persons,  and  the  opportunity  afforded  was  not  lost  upon 
her.  She  returned  home  in  1851,  and  was  married  to 
Judge  David  T.  Patterson,  on  the  13th  of  December, 
1856.  No  wedding  festivities  marked  the  occasion,  it 
being  congenial  to  her  habits  to  have  a  quiet  ceremony. 
After  which  she  visited  Nashville,  where  her  father  was 
residing  as  Governor  of  the  State.  Extendinof  her  tour 
through  the  Southern  cities  to  New  Orleans,  she  returned 


576  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

to  her  old  home  in  Tennessee,  where  she  continued  to 
live  until  the  war  in  i860  disturbed  the  private  relations 
of  the  entire  family.  Throughout  the  stormy  years  of 
'61  and  '62,  she  remained  in  East  Tennessee,  nor  did 
she  leave  there  till,  late  in  the  next  year,  she  visited  her 
mother's  family  at  Nashville.  It  was  her  intention  to 
remain  several  months  and  then  go  back  to  her  home; 
but  before  she  again  crossed  its  threshold,  the  two  con- 
tending armies  had  passed  through  the  place,  leaving 
nothing  but  the  empty  house.  Every  particle  of  furni- 
ture, ever)'  prized  relic  of  her  own  and  her  children's 
infant  years  were  gone,  and  their  home  was  desolated. 
She  trod  its  familiar  apartments  where  she  had  left  so 
many  mementos  of  a  happy  past,  and  nothing  remained 
save  the  bare  walls.  Well  she  remembered  the  arrang- 
ing and  adjustmg  of  everything  before  closing  it  up,  and 
as  she  gazed  upon  its  comfortless  appearance,  her  mind 
dwelt  upon  the  time  she  had  spent  in  adding  to  its 
adornment. 

The  family  were  in  Nashville  when  the  nomination  of 
the  father,  then  Military  Governor  of  Tennessee,  as 
Vice-President  was  announced,  and  they  witnessed  the 
delight  of  the  Union  men  of  the  Capital,  as  the  news 
spread  of  his  success. 

Early  in  February,  the  Vice-President  proposed  to 
leave  Tennessee,  and  his  children  decided  to  seek  once 
more  their  home  in  Greenville.  The  news  of  the  assas- 
sination of  President  Lincoln  flashed  over  the  wires  on 
the  morning  of  the    1 5th  of  April,  as  the  drums  were 


IN    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  577 

beating  and  soldiers  parading  for  a  grand  review  and 
procession  in  honor  of  the  recent  victories.  It  reached 
the  family  of  Mr.  Johnson  as  they  were  preparing  for 
their  removal  home,  and  awakened  in  their  breasts 
anxious  fears  for  the  fate  of  the  husband  and  father. 
Assurances  of  his  safety  calmed  their  minds,  and  with 
deep  thankfulness  that  he  was  spared,  they  sorrowed 
for  the  untimely  death  of  the  President.  The  Nashville 
papers  of  the  19th  of  April  thus  speak  of  the  funeral 
procession  in  honor  of  the  murdered  Chief  Magistrate: 

"All  places  of  business  were  closed,  and  every  store 
and  dwelling  appropriately  draped  in  mourning.  The 
procession  numbered  upward  of  fifteen  tliousand  per- 
sons; amoncT  them  were  Generals  Thomas,  Miller, 
Whipple  and  Donaldson,  and  in  the  line  of  civilians 
which  swelled  its  lenrrth  was  seen  the  carriage  of  Mrs. 
James  K.  Polk,  occupied  by  herself  and  Mrs.  Patterson, 
the  daughter  of  President  Johnson." 

The  family  of  the  new  President  reached  Washington 
in  June,  and  soon  after  took  up  their  residence  in  the 
White  House.  Here  was  a  new  field  entirely  for  the 
diffident  woman  who  was  compelled  to  do  the  honors  in 
lieu  of  her  mother,  who  was  a  confirmed  invalid.  After 
the  harrowing  scenes  through  which  the  former  occu- 
pants had  passed,  the  House  looked  anything  but  invit- 
ing to  the  family.  Soldiers  had  wandered  unchallenged 
the  entire  suites  of  parlors ;  and  the  East  Room,  dirty 
and  soiled,  looked  as  little  like  itself  as  could  be  im- 
agined.    Guards  had  slept  upon   the  sofas  and  carpets 

27 


578  MARTHA    I'AITEKSON. 

until  they  were  ruined,  and  the  immenr,e  crowds  who, 
during  the  preceding  years  of  war,  filled  the  President's 
house  continually,  had  worn  out  the  already  ancient 
furniture.  No  sign  of  neatness  or  comfort  greeted 
their  appearance  at  their  new  home,  but  evidences 
everywhere  of  neglect  and  decay  met  their  eyes.  To 
put  aside  all  ceremony  and  work  constantly,  was  the 
portion  of  Mrs.  Patterson,  under  whose  control  were 
placed  the  numerous  servants  connected  with  the  estab- 
lishment. 

"  The  first  reception  held  by  President  Johnson  was 
on  the  first  of  January,  1866.  assisted  by  Mrs.  Patterson 
and  Mrs.  Stover,  his  two  daughters.  Their  softness  and 
ease  of  manner  had  an  eloquent  external  expression  in 
the  simple  neatness  of  their  apparel,  and  surpassed  in 
c[uiet  dignity  all  who  gathered  to  see  them.  The  house 
had  not  been  renovated,  and  the  apartments  were  dingy 
and  destitute  of  ornament  save  two  kinds,  which  are 
more  touchingly  beautiful  than  gems  of  the  East. 
Natural  flowers  were  in  profusion,  and  left  their  fra- 
grance, while  the  little  children  of  the  house  were  living, 
breathing  ornaments  attracting  every  eye.  The  old 
injured  furniture  of  the  East  Room  was  removed,  and 
the  worn-out  carpets  covered  with  linen.  The  super- 
vision of  Mrs.  Patterson  made  the  house  quite  present- 
able. Mrs.  Patterson  was  attired  in  a  blue  velvet,  white 
lace  shawl,  and  point  lace  collar.  Her  dark  hair  was  piii 
back  from  her  face,  with  pendent  tresses,  and  adorned 
with  a  single  white  flower.     Mrs.  Stover,  who  was  yet  in 


REFURNISHING    THE    MANSION.  579 

half- mourning  for  her  gallant  husband,  wore  a  heavy 
black  silk,  with  no  ornaments  in  her  light  hair." 

During  the  early  spring  an  appropriation  was  made 
by  Congress  of  thirty  thousand  dollars  to  refurnish  the 
Executive  Mansion,  and  during  the  long  and  warm  sum- 
mer succeeding,  Mrs.  Patterson  struggled  unceasingly 
with  the  atlas-heaps  of  lumber  and  old  furniture  scarcely 
worth  repairing,  but  which  was  renovated  for  use.  The 
firmness  and  decision  of  her  character  was  fully  tested 
in  this  trying  ordeal,  but  she  triumphed  over  every 
difficulty,  and  so  managed  the  amount  appropriated 
that  the  Executive  Mansion  was  once  more  comfort- 
able and  more  beautiful  than  ever  before. 

Appreciating  the  condition  of  the  country  just  emerg- 
ing from  a  long  strife,  she  determined  to  make  the  funds 
voted  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  demands  of  the  upholsterer, 
and  to  do  so  she  constituted  herself  acrent. 

Hearing  the  proposals  of  various  firms,  she  found,  to 
put  the  matter  in  other  hands,  she  could  not  more  than 
furnish  the  parlors  and  reception  rooms,  and  then  her 
determination  was  formed  to  superintend  the  purchases. 
By  dint  of  perseverance  and  the  co-operation  of  compe- 
tent assistants,  she  had  the  house  completed  when  the 
winter  season  approached.  Old  and  abused  sets  were 
repolished  and  covered,  and  the  papering  which  she  had 
not  the  means  to  remove  entirely,  was  made  to  assume  a 
brighter  appearance  by  the  addition  of  panelings  and 
gilt  ornaments. 

The  warm  weather,  which  had  ever  found  her  before 


580  MARTHA    rAlTEKSi-'iV. 

the  war  in  her  mountain  home,  now  came  upon  her  in 
its  intensity,  as  she  labored  with  her  numerous  assistants 
in  arranorincr  the  comfortless  residence  over  which  she 
presided.  Who,  while  admiring  the  elegant  and  refined 
atmosphere  of  the  historic  house  during  her  father's  ad- 
ministration, imagined  that  the  entire  labor  was  accom- 
plished by  the  tact  and  energy  of  the  daughter  who  re- 
ceived and  entertained  her  visitors  so  unostentatiously  ? 
Tenderly  caring  for  her  invalid  mother,  and  her  chil- 
dren, who  grew  weary  of  the  restraints  imposed  upon 
them,  she  struo-aled  on  and  succeeded  in  makino-  the 
house  not  only  attractive  to  her  friends,  but  to  citizens 
and  strangers,  who  pronounced  it  handsomer  than  it 
ever  was  in  times  past.  The  exquisite  walls  of  the 
Blue  Room  long  remained  a  lasting  proof  of  her 
artistic  and  cultivated  taste,  and  the  graceful  adorn- 
ments of  the  hitherto  stiff  and  ungainly  East  Room 
were  evidences  of  her  ability.  A  newspaper  corre- 
spondent who  visited  the  White  House  complimented 
Mrs.  Patterson  upon  the  Republican  simplicity  of  the 
establishment,  to  which  she  replied,  "W^e  are  a  plain 
people,  sir,  from  the  mountains  of  Tennessee,  and  we 
do  not  propose  to  put  on  airs  because  we  have  the  for- 
tune to  occupy  this  place  for  a  little  while."  "  There  is 
a  homeliness  in  this  utterance,"  said  the  Albany  Evening 
Joumial,  "  which  will  shock  the  sensitive  refinement  of 
'  ottar  of  roses  and  lavender  water  classes,'  but  it  has  a 
sentiment  in  it  which  must  meet  with  response  from 
every  true  lover  of  democratic  ideas  and  practices." 


FAVORALLE    OPINIONS    OF    HER.  58 1 

Throughout  the  White  House  there  existed  not  a 
single  evidence  of  tawdry  gaudiness  or  coarseness  in 
color  or  quahty;  and  from  cellar  to  garret  it  was  over- 
hauled and  adorned  by  the  unaffected  hostess,  who 
called  herself  "  a  plain  person  from  East  Tennessee." 

"  The  reference  of  Mrs.  Patterson  to  the  mountain 
home  of  her  family,  is  suggestive  of  the  fact  that  when 
the  tornado  of  war  was  sweeping  over  Tennessee,  Pres- 
ident Johnson's  kin  dwelt  where  its  ravages  were  most 
dreadful,  and  that  while  some  who  are  now  leading  the 
shoddy  aristocracy  of  the  metropolis  were  coining  their 
ill-eotten  dollars  from  the  sufferingrs  and  blood  of  brave 
men,  they  were  being  hunted  from  point  to  point,  driven 
to  seek  a  refuge  in  the  solitude  of  the  wilderness,  forced 
to  subsist  on  coarse  and  insufficient  food,  and  more  than 
once  called  to  bury  with  secret  and  stolen  sepulture  those 
whom  they  loved :  murdered  because  they  would  not  join 
in  deeds  of  odious  treason  to  union  and  liberty.  A  family 
with  such  a  record  of  devotion  and  suffering,  needs 
for  its  recognition  none  of  the  adventitious  aids  of  show 
and  pretence.  It  is  refreshing  in  these  days  of  extrava- 
gant and  pompous  display,  when  silly  pretence  is  made 
to  pass  current  for  gentility,  when  bombast  and  fustian 
are  palmed  off  as  good  breeding,  when  the  shopman's 
wife  emulates  the  luxury  of  a  duke's  household,  when 
no  one  is  presumed  to  be  worthy  the  honors  of  good 
society  who  does  not  '  put  on  airs,'  to  hear  that  the 
President's  daughter,  who,  by  courtesy  of  her  new 
position  as  his  housekeeper,  is  the  first  lady  of  the  land, 


582  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

proposes  to  set  the  example  of  a  truly  republican  s*m- 
pllclty  all  too  rare  among  those  who  influence  the 
customs  of  the  land." 

In  September,  1867,  Mrs.  Patterson  accompanied  the 
Presidential  party  on  their  tour  through  the  Northern 
and  Western  States,  leaving  her  two  children  with  her 
mother  at  the  White  House.  Returninof  in  a  few  weeks, 
she  resumed  the  routine  of  her  life,  and  prepared  for 
the  approaching  season. 

Mrs.  Patterson  is  the  first  instance  of  the  wife  of  a 
Senator  and  a  daughter  of  the  President  presiding  over 
the  Executive  Mansion.  President  Jefferson's  second 
daughter,  Mrs.  Eppes,  held  a  similar  position,  but  she 
never  presided  over  the  Mansion,  and  was  but  once  a 
visitor  at  the  President's  house  during  her  short  life, 
after  her  father's  election.  The  threefold  responsibili- 
ties were  accepted  and  endured  with  a  calm  reliance,  on 
the  energies  of  a  mind  ever  ready  for  the  occasion,  and 
the  world  has  already  rendered  the  verdict  of  "  many 
daughters  have  done  virtuously,  but  thou  excellest  them 
all- 
Simple  but  elegant  in  her  apparel,  never  descending 
to  a  disregard  of  place,  yet  not  carried  away  by  the 
follies  of  fashion,  Mrs.  Patterson  pleased  the  eye,  and 
gratified  the  pride  of  all  who  felt  an  interest  in  her 
success.  Golden  opinions  of  her  taste  were  won  by  the 
rich  simplicity  of  her  toilet  on  every  public  occasion,  and 
the  beauty  of  her  dress  in  part  consisted  in  the  artless, 
unassuminof  manner  of  the  wearer. 


I 


MOTHER,    DAUGHTER    AND    WIFE.  5S3 

In  the  combined  elements  which  go  to  form  the 
marked  character  of  Mrs.  Patterson,  she  was  not  unHke 
Mrs.  John  Adams,  and  her  will-power,  guided  by 
superior  common-sense,  recalls  to  mind  the  Hfe  of  that 
brave  woman  of  the  Revolution  ;  but  the  current  of  cir- 
cumstances into  which  she  has  been  thrown,  has  been 
almost  too  strong  to  allow  her  perfect  freedom  of  ac- 
tion. In  her  life  there  has  never  come  a  time  when 
she  might  choose  between  diverging  pathways;  but  if 
she  could  not  alter  the  stern  fiats  of  fate,  she  had  the; 
power  of  dignifying  little  insignificant  things,  and,  by 
her  manner  of  meeting  them,  making  the  pleasantest 
side  appear.  In  an  eminent  degree  she  inherits  that 
most  marked  trait  of  her  father's  character,  patient  en- 
durance, and  knows  "how  sublime  a  thing  it  is,  to  suffer 
and  be  strong."  Treading  unmurmuringly  the  ap- 
pointed way  of  life,  she  depends  upon  her  judgment  to 
o-uide  her  bark,  recoonizino-  the  fact  that  when  nature 
fills  the  sails  the  vessel  goes  smoothly  on  ;  and  when 
judgment  is  the  pilot  the  insurance  need  not  be  high. 

In  the  higher  walks  of  literary  pursuits  she  will  never 
shine,  nor  yet  as  a  conspicuous  person  in  any  depart- 
ment of  life.  She  has  essentially  a  Southerner's  love  of 
home ;  and  the  duties  devolving  upon  her  as  a  mother, 
daughter,  and  wife,  fill  the  meed  of  her  ambition.  True 
to  principle,  she  will  perform  the  duties  of  her  station, 
be  it  high  or  low,  and  the  amount  of  courage  hidden 
away  in  the  recesses  of  her  nature  would  lead  her  in 
emerofcncies  to  dare — if  need  be — to  die. 


584  MARTHA    TATTERSON. 

Simple  to  a  fault  in  her  desires,  she  has  learned  to 
gather  happiness  from  within,  and  to  rely  upon  the  cold 
charity  of  the  world  for  nothing.  She  would  not  pine 
for  luxuries  which  others  deem  necessities,  but  even 
rather  scorns  the  value  many  set  upon  them.  Reared  as 
she  was  in  childhood  by  parents  remarkable  for  cease- 
less industry,  she  imbibed  the  lessons  taught  her  by 
example,  and  is  energetic  to  restlessness,  and  vigilant  in 
working  while  the  day  lasts. 

During  the  impeachment  trial  of  her  father,  Mrs. 
Patterson  was  asked  what  she  thought  of  it,  and  how 
it  would  terminate.  "  I  have  so  much  to  do,"  she  re- 
plied, "that  I  have  no  time  to  discuss  the  subject,  and 
I  suppose  my  private  opinion  is  not  worth  much  ;  I  do 
not  know  how  it  will  end,  but  all  we  can  do  is  to  wait." 
And  she  did  wait,  bending  every  energy  to  entertain 
as  became  her  position,  and  wearing  always  a  patient, 
sufferinof  look.  Throucrh  the  lon-j  weeks  of  the  trial, 
she  listened  to  every  request,  saw  every  caller,  and 
served  every  petitioner  (and  only  those  who  have  filled 
this  position  know  how  arduous  is  this  duty),  hiding 
from  all  eyes  the  anxious  weight  of  care  oppressing 
her.  If  she  was  indisposed  after  the  acquittal,  it  sur- 
prised no  one  who  had  seen  her  struggling  to  keep  up 
before. 

There  are  no  triumphs  or  displays  to  record  of  her  life, 
no  travels  in  foreign  lands,  nor  novel  sights  of  strange 
places.  She  has  not  stood  in  the  Orient  and  watched 
the  great  stars  swim  down  hot  southern  skies,  nor  heard 


HER    OiNEROUS    DUTIES.  585 

from  the  distant  palm  groves  the  orioles  and  nightingales. 
The  even  tenor  of  her  way  has  been  spent  far  from  the 
palaces  of  luxury  or  the  frivolities  of  fashion.  She  has 
not  trodden  the  gilded  halls  of  ephemeral  wealth,  nor 
basked  in  the  sunlight  of  uninterrupted  prosperity,  but 
from  the  emanations  of  her  father's  genius  she  has 
o^athered  the  forces  which  strenothen  her  own  mind,  and 
the  rounds  she  has  mounted  in  the  ladder  of  progressive 
development  have  been  won  by  earnest  thought  and  the 
gradual  experiences  of  a  still  young  life. 

She  more  than  any  other  of  her  name  and  race,  appre- 
ciated the  giant  efforts  of  her  father,  and  upon  her  he 
devoted  most  attention.  The  companion  in  childhood 
of  the  village  tailor,  she  became  in  womanhood  the 
counsellor  and  friend  of  the  successful  statesman. 

Louis  Napoleon,  in  his  Life  of  Julius  Caesar,  says: 
"  How  little  able  arc  common  men  to  judge  of  the  mo- 
tives which  govern  great  souls."  The  history  of  Mrs, 
Patterson's  stay  in  the  Executive  Mansion  suggests  the 
thought  how  unappreciated  she  was  by  those  who  fawned 
around  her  in  her  hour  of  triumph.  Possessing  native 
intellect  to  a  high  degree,  she  knows  her  latent  powers, 
and  her  head  thinks  and  her  soul  feels  the  difference  be- 
tween her  sound  principles  and  practical  sense,  and  the 
flippant,  vain  women  who  consider  her  unfashionable. 
With  such  a  class  she  could  have  no  sympathy ;  and  it  is 
foreign  to  her  nature  to  dissemble.  Circumventing  all 
attempts  at  advice  and  assistance,  she  taught  many  who 
insisted  upon  helping  her,  that  a  sensible  woman  is  never 


586  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

at  a  loss  for  words  or  manners,  and  to  such  Presidents* 
houses  are  as  simple  residences,  requiring  only  the  re- 
finement of  the  lady  and  the  ability  of  a  resolute,  deter- 
mined person.  Genial  and  social  to  familiar  friends,  she 
was  generally  distant  and  reserved  toward  promiscuous 
visitors  ;  v;hile,  at  the  same  time,  she  had  a  high  sense 
of  the  justice  due  the  masses  from  the  family  of  the  first 
official  in  the  nation.  This  feeling  of  duty  toward  others 
actuated  her  course  in  keeping  the  White  House  ready 
always  to  be  seen  by  the  crowds  who  daily  throng  it. 
Parlors  and  conservatories  were  kept  open  as  much  as 
consistent,  though  many  times  very  annoying  to  the  in- 
mates, and  rendering  the  privacy  of  their  own  apart- 
ments rather  a  matter  of  chance  than  of  certainty.  It 
was  not  unfrequent  that  idle  curiosity-seekers  ventured 
through  the  closed  doors  which  separated  the  private 
from  the  public  wing  of  tliO  building,  and  intruded  upon 
the  forbearing  occupants ;  yet  such  occurrences  were 
never  made  the  occasion  of  trouble — a  polite  request 
and  pleasant  acceptance  of  the  proffered  apology  suf- 
ficed, and  not  unfrequendy  added  the  otfenders  of  eti- 
quette to  her  list  of  nevi^-made  friends. 

It  was  the  custom  of  Mrs.  Patterson  to  rise  early;  and 
after  a  simple  toilet,  to  skim  the  milk  and  attend  to  the 
dairy  before  breakfast.  In  the  hall  connecting  the  con- 
servatory to  the  main  building,  her  clean  pails  might  be 
seen  ranged  in  regular  order.  When,  on  Saturday  af- 
ternoons, the  greenhouses  were  thrown  open  to  the 
public,  these  evidences  of  her  house-keeping  propensi- 


THE    LAST    RECEPTION.  587 

ties  were  removed.  Fond  of  the  delicacies  of  the  table, 
she  valued  home-made  articles,  and  the  delicious  food 
found  always  upon  her  table  gave  evidence  of  her  per- 
sonal oversifjht  and  thoufjhtfulness. 

Caring  for  real  comforts,  to  the  exclusion  of  costly  ex- 
penditures, she  prided  herself  upon  gratifying  the  wants 
and  tastes  of  her  household,  and  rendering  the  domestic 
life  of  the  White  House  a  reality. 

In  the  possession  of  such  principles,  and  actuated  by 
motives  which  redound  to  her  praise,  Mrs.  Patterson's 
life  cannot  fail  to  be  worthy  of  emulation,  and  the  satis- 
faction of  her  conscience  must  be  a  well-spring  of  plea- 
sure, sparkling  like  sunshine  through  the  darkest  places 
in  her  earthly  career. 

The  last  levee  held  by  President  Johnson  was  dis- 
cussed by  a  Washington  paper  after  the  following  manner: 

"The  levees  at  the  Executive  Mansion  have  always 
been  occasions  of  especial  interest  to  strangers  who 
chanced  to  be  in  Washincrton  during  the  session  of  Con- 
gress ;  but  never  before,  since  receptions  were  inaugu- 
rated, has  there  been  such  an  ovation  at  a  Presidential 
levee  as  was  last  night  at  President  Johnson's  closing 
reception.  The  attendance  comprised  not  only  an  un- 
usual number  of  our  own  citizens,  but  also  a  greater 
multitude  of  visitors  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  than 
was  ever  present  on  a  similar  occasion.  As  early  ar. 
half-past  seven,  and  long  before  the  doors  were  opened, 
there  were  numerous  arrivals  at  the  Presidential  Man- 
sion.    An  hour  later,  and  the  rush  had  commenced  in 


588  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

good  earnest.  A  long  line  of  carriages  extended  from 
the  street  to  the  portico  in  front  of  the  house ;  every  car 
on  the  F  street  and  avenue  lines  added  fresh  accessions 
to  the  crowd ;  while  hundreds,  availing  themselves  of 
the  pleasant  weather,  came  on  foot.  Although  an  extra 
police  force  had  been  detailed  for  the  evening,  and 
every  arrangement  had  been  made  in  the  cloak-room 
for  the  accommodation  of  all,  so  great  was  the  rush  that 
confusion  was,  in  a  measure,  unavoidable.  The  dressing- 
rooms  and  corridors  were  closely  packed  with  people 
mainly  striving  to  reach  the  entrance  to  the  Reception- 
room,  and  it  was  found  necessary  to  close  the  outside 
doors,  and  also  the  door  leadinQ^  from  the  hall  into  the 
Red  Parlor.  The  crowd  here  was  fearful,  but,  fortu- 
nately, it  was  composed  mainly  of  the  male  sex. 

"  Those  in  front  were  pushed  on  by  those  behind,  and 
the  position  of  every  one  was  most  uncomfortable,  while 
at  one  time,  persons  were  in  actual  danger  of  being 
crushed.  However,  the  utmost  good  humor  prevailed, 
and  we  heard  of  no  accidents.  In  the  ladies'  dressing- 
room,  the  pressure  was  also  very  great,  and  the  break- 
ing down  of  a  table  caused  some  thoughtless  person  to 
raise  an  alarm  of  fire,  which  for  a  few  moments  created 
terror  and  consternation  amono-  the  timid  fair  ones.  At 
ten  o'clock,  the  line  of  equipages  not  only  filled  the  car- 
riage-way from  the  east  to  the  west  gate,  but  extended 
for  two  squares  on  Pennsylvania  Avenue, 

"The  space  in  front  of  the  Mansion,  and  the  sidewalk 
from  the  portico  to  the  gate,  was  crowded  with  people, 


TIIK    LAST    LEVEE.  589 

waiting  in  the  hope  of  gaining  admission  to  the  house. 
PoHcemen  were  now  stationed  at  the  front  entrance,  and 
only  a  few  were  admitted  at  a  time.  Tliose  who  made 
their  exit  from  the  mansion  were  obHged  to  pass  under 
the  arms  of  the  pohcemen,  who  were  stationed  to  keep 
back  the  surging  crowd.  Hundreds  left  unable  even 
to  reach  the  portico.  The  door  leading  to  the  ladies' 
dressing-room  was  blocked  by  gentlemen  looking  for 
those  under  their  charge,  while  scores  of  bright  eyes 
searched  anxiously  through  the  throng  seeking  in  vain 
for  escorts  not  to  be  found.  Many  of  the  ladies,  unable 
to  find  their  escorts,  were  pushed  on  by  the  crowd,  and 
were  obliofed  to  make  their  entrance  into  the  I^lue 
Room  unattended,  and  in  several  instances  it  was  not 
until  the  close  of  the  reception  that  parties  who  had  been 
separated  at  the  commencement  of  the  evening,  were 
ao^ain  united. 

"  The  President  occupied  his  usual  position  near  the 
entrance  of  the  Blue  Parlor,  tlie  visitors  being  presented 
by  Marshal  Gording.  From  eight  o'clock  until  after 
eleven,  the  crowd  poured  through  the  apartments,  and 
to  each  person,  however  humble  his  or  her  station.  Pres- 
ident Johnson  extended  a  pleasant  and  cordial  greeting. 
Mrs.  Patterson,  who  stood  at  the  right  of  the  President, 
and  a  few  steps  farther  back  in  the  room,  was  attired 
with  customary  taste  and  elegance.  She  wore  a  Lyons 
black  velvet,  handsomely  trimmed  with  bands  of  satin 
and  black  lace.  A  shawl  of  white  thread  lace  fell  in 
graceful  folds  over  her  dress.     Her  hair  was  simply  and 


590  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

becomingly  ornamented,  and  her  jewelry  was  of  the 
most  chaste  description.  The  ceremony  of  introduction 
was  graciously  performed  by  General  Mickler.  In  the 
vast  concourse  assembled  to  pay  their  respects  to  the 
retiring  Chief  Magistrate  were  many  persons  of  dis- 
tinction from  abroad,  as  well  as  an  unusual  number  of 
Washington  celebrities.  From  Maine  to  Florida,  and 
from  the  Adantic  coast  to  the  seaboard  on  the  Pacific, 
there  was  scarcely  a  State  or  Territory  that  was  not 
represented  last  night,  at  the  farewell  reception  of  An- 
drew Johnson,  whose  kindly  grasp  and  sincere  smile 
called  forth  many  a  hearty  wish  for  his  future  happiness 
and  prosperity.  Exquisite  bouquets  of  choice  exotics 
were  scattered  through  the  rooms.  The  superb  East 
Parlor  was  dazzlingly  illuminated.  Magnificent  mirrors 
flashed  back  the  light  from  the  quivering  crystals  of  the 
massive  chandeliers.  From  the  ante-chamber  came  the 
sweet  strains  of  the  Marine  Band,  floating  in  softened 
cadence  through  the  sumptuous  apartments.  The  scene 
was  one  of  unrivalled  interest,  and  will  never  be  forgot- 
ten by  those  who  were  present.  The  display  of  wealth 
and  beauty  was  bewildering.  It  would  be  a  difficult 
task  to  describe  the  toilettes  of  the  many  lovely  ladies 
present,  and  it  would  be  still  harder  to  decide,  among  so 
large  a  number  of  magnificent  dresses,  which  was  the 
most  beautiful." 

Another  prominent  daily  contained  a  lengthy  and 
interesting  account  of  this  reception,  the  largest  ever 
held  in  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  from  all  the  circum- 


NEWSPAPER    ACCOUNTS    OF   THE    LEVEE.  59 1 

Stances  connected  with  the  unpleasant  poHtical  life  of 
the  President,  was  a  significant  proof  that  he  was  socially 
pre-eminently  popular.  Every  grade  of  citizens,  repre- 
senting every  party  and  creed,  vied  with  each  other  in 
their  expressions  of  admiration  for  the  honest,  upright 
conduct  of  the  retiring:  Executive  and  his  charming- 
daughters. 

"Last  night,  President  Johnson  held  his  farewell 
reception  at  the  White  House,  and  certainly  qiute  in  a 
blaze  of  glory,  as  far  as  social  attention  is  concerned. 
Perhaps  the  whole  history  of  the  Presidential  Mansion 
gives  no  record  of  such  a  crowded  reception.  It  is  esti- 
mated that  some  five  thousand  people  sought  admit- 
tance in  vain,  while  fully  as  many  must  have  gained  an 
entrance,  almost  each  individual  member  of  this  success- 
ful crowd  submittin<T  the  host  of  the  eveninof  to  the 
inevitable  hand-shaking.  He  bore  it  well,  and  until  the 
last  moment  a  sweet,  suffering  smile  irradiated  his  coun- 
tenance. The  band  struck  up  'Hail  Columbia,'  and  the 
doors  were  throv/n  open.  The  President  received  the 
crov/d  in  the  Blue  Room,  which  was  handsomely  lighted 
up,  and  adorned  in  the  centre  with  a  magnificent  stand 
of  fracrrant  flowers.  As  the  crowd  increased,  the  sa^a- 
cious  official  abandoned  the  svstcm  of  ar.nouncinof 
names,  so  that  the  President  accepted  without  explana- 
tion all  who  presented  themselves. 

"A  fev/  steps  from  the  President,  and  near  the  stand 
of  flowers,  Mrs.  Patterson,  a  handsome,  though  not  tall 
lady,   of  very  pleasing   manners  and  appearance,  're 


592  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

ceived'  the  lady  guests.  She  wore  an  elegant  white  lace 
shawl,  which  quite  enveloped  her  person,  and  a  long  curl 
fell  down  her  back.  The  simply  unaffected  grace  of 
this  lady,  and  her  entire  freedom  from  pretension,  either 
i.i  garb  or  manner,  attracted  highly  favorable  comment. 
Mrs,  Patterson  is  quite  a  young  lady,  and  when  some 
of  the  bare-armed,  bare-necked,  would-be-juvenile  dow- 
agers were  presented  to  her,  tlie  contrast  was  entirely  in 
favor  of  the  President's  daucrhter." 

Of  the  many  elegant  entertainments  given  by  Presi- 
dent Johnson,  none  surpassed  the  State  dinners.  They 
were  conducted  on  a  most  generous  and  princely  scale, 
and  reflected  lasting  honor  upon  the  taste  and  judgment 
of  his  daughter,  to  whom  was  left  the  entire  arrange- 
ment  of  every  social  entertainment.  The  magnificent 
State  dinincr-room,  which  had  been  closed  durincf  the 
last  few  years  of  President  Lincoln's  administration, 
became  again  a  scene  of  hospitality,  and  resounded  once 
more  with  the  voices  of  welcome  guests  and  personal 
friends. 

Nothing  contributed  more  than  these  "affairs  of  State" 
to  win  for  the  family  that  popularity,  apart  from  their 
lofty  social  position,  which  they  enjoyed  whilst  in  Wash- 
ington. A  letter  written  by  a  lady  who  was  familiar 
with  the  home-life  of  Mrs.  Patterson,  may  not  prove  un- 
interesting, pertaining,  as  it  does,  particularly  to  the 
subject  of  State  dinners. 

"  Late  in  the  afternoon  I  was  sittinor  in  the  cheerful 
room  occupied  by  the  invalid  mother,  when  Mrs.  Patter- 


AN    INTERESTING    LETTER.  '  593 

son  came  for  me  to  go  and  see  the  table.  The  last 
State  dinner  was  to  be  given  this  night,  and  the  prepara- 
tions for  the  occurrence  had  been  commensurate  with 
those  of  former  occasions.  I  looked  at  the  invalid, 
whose  feet  had  never  crossed  the  apartment  to  which 
we  were  going,  and  by  whom  the  elegant  entertainments 
over  which  her  daughters  presided,  were  totally  unen- 
joyed.  Through  the  hall  and  down  the  stairway,  I 
followed  my  hostess  and  stood  beside  her  in  the  grand 
old  room.  It  was  a  beautiful  and  altogether  rare  scene 
which  I  viewed  in  the  quiet  light  of  this  closing  winter 
day,  and  the  recollections  and  associations  of  the  time 
linger  most  vividly  in  memory  now.  The  table  was 
arranged  for  forty  persons,  each  guest's  name  being 
upon  the  plate  designated  in  the  invitation  list. 

"  In  the  centre  stood  three  mao^nificent  ormolu  orna- 
ments  filled  with  fadeless  French  flowers,  while  beside 
each  plate  was  a  bouquet  of  odorous  greenhouse  exotics. 
It  was  not  the  color  or  design  of  the  Sevres  china,  of 
green  and  gold — the  fragile  glass,  nor  yet  the  massive 
plate  which  attracted  my  admiration,  but  the  harmony 
of  the  whole,  which  satisfied  and  refreshed.  From  the 
heavy  curtains,  depending  from  the  lofty  windows,  to 
the  smallest  ornament  in  the  room,  all  was  ornate  and 
consistent.  I  could  not  but  contrast  this  vision  of 
grandeur  with  the  delicate,  child-like  form  of  the 
woman  who  watched  me  with  a  quiet  smile  as  I  en- 
joyed this  evidence  of   her  taste  and  appreciation  of 

the  beautiful. 
38 


594  *  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

"All  day  she  had  watched  over  the  movements  of 
those  engaged  in  the  arrangement  of  this  room,  and 
yet  so  unobtrusive  had  been  her  presence  and  so  sys- 
tematically had  she  planned,  that  no  confusion  occurred 
in  the  complicated  household  machinery.  For  the 
pleasure  it  would  give  her  children  hereafter,  she  had 
an  artist  photograph  the  interior  of  the  apartment, 
and  he  was  just  leaving  with  his  trophy  when  we 
entered. 

"  Long  we  lingered,  enjoying  the  satisfaction  one  ex- 
periences in  beholding  a  beautiful  and  finished  task. 
All  was  ready  and  complete,  and  when  we  passed  from 
the  room,  there  was  still  a  time  for  rest  and  repose 
before  the  hour  named  in  the  cards  of  invitation. 

"  Through  the  Red  and  Blue  parlors  we  sauntered 
slowly,  she  recalling  reminiscences  of  the  past  four 
years,  and  speaking  with  unreserved  frankness  of  her 
feelings  on  her  approaching  departure.  It  was  almost 
twilight  as  we  entered  the  East  Room,  and  its  sombre- 
ness  and  wondrous  size  struck  me  forcibly.  The  hour 
for  strangers  and  visitors  had  past,  and  we  felt  secure 
to  wander  in  our  old-fashioned  way  up  and  down  its 
great  length.  It  was  softly  raining,  we  discovered  as 
we  peered  through  the  window,  and  a  light  fringe  of 
mist  hung  over  the  trees  in  the  grounds,  and  added  a 
shade  of  gloom  to  the  cheerless  view.  The  feeling  of 
bodily  comfort  one  has  in  watching  it  rain,  from  the 
window  of  a  cozy  room,  was  intensified  by  the  associa- 
tions of  this  historic  place,  and  the  sadness  of  time  was 
lost  in  the  outreachings  of  eternity. 


THE    LEITER    CONTINUED.  595 

"  Its  spectral  appearance  as  we  turned  from  the  win- 
dow and  looked  down  its  shadowy  outlines — the  quickly 
succeeding  thoughts  of  the  many  who  had  crowded  into 
its  now  deserted  space,  and  the  remembrance  of  some 
who  would  no  more  come,  were  fast  crowding  out  the 
practical,  and  leaving  in  its  place  mental  excitement, 
and  spiritualized,  nervous  influences,  not  compatible 
with  ordinary  every-day  life.  Mrs.  Patterson  was  first 
to  note  the  flight  of  time,  and  as  we  turned  to  leave  with 
the  past  the  hour  it  claimed,  her  always  grave  face 
lighted  up  with  a  genuine  happy  expression,  as  she  said, 
*  I  am  srlad  this  is  the  last  of  entertainments — it  suits  me 
better  to  be  quiet  and  in  my  own  home.  Mother  is  not 
able  to  enjoy  these  things.  Belle  is  too  young,  and  I 
am  indifferent  to  them — so  it  is  well  it  is  almost  over.* 
As  she  ceased  speaking  the  curtains  over  the  main  en- 
trance parted,  and  the  President  peered  in,  '  to  see,'  he 
said,  '  if  Martha  had  shown  you  the  portraits  of  the 
Presidents?'  Joining  him  in  his  promenade,  we  passed 
before  them,  as  they  were  hanging  in  the  main  hall,  he 
dwelling  upon  the  life  and  character  of  each,  and  we 
listening  to  his  descriptions,  and  personal  recollections. 
The  long  shadows  of  twilight  and  deepening  gloom  dis- 
appeared before  the  brilliant  glare  of  the  gas,  and  we 
turned  from  this  place  of  interest,  reminded  that  the 
present  was  only  ours,  and  with  the  past  we  could  have 
no  possible  business  when  inexorable  custom  demanded 
of  us  speedy  recognition  and  attention." 

On  the  mornijig  of  tlie  4th  of  Marcli,  1869,  President 


596  MARTHA    PATTERSON. 

Johnson,  accompanied  by  his  family,  bade  adieu  to  the 
servants  and  employes  of  the  Mansion,  and  were 
driven  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  Coyle,  on  Missouri 
Avenue.  Mrs.  Patterson  accepted  the  hospitality  of 
Secretary  Wells,  and  reached  there  soon  after  twelve 
o'clock. 

Thus  closed  the  administration  of  President  John- 
son. The  most  perilous,  stormy,  and  trying  one  ever 
known  in  the  history  of  this  country ;  a  record  of  rude 
unpleasant  contact  with  defiled  revilers,  and  a  continued 
struesfle  from  first  to  last  to  maintain  untarnished  the 
oath  too  sacred  to  be  violated.  Not  here,  but  in  the 
annals  of  history  will  all  its  triumphs  be  written;  not  in 
this  day  or  generation  can  its  untainted  and  correct 
measures  be  fully  estimated,  but  to  the  coming  men 
of  America  it  is  bequeathed,  a  sad  acknowledgment  of 
the  tyrannous  oppression  of  a  President,  and  a  testi- 
mony of  his  undeviating  course,  moving  onward,  swerv- 
ing neither  to  the  rieht  nor  to  the  left,  but  forward  to 
the  cradles  of  posterity  who  will  pass  judgment  and 
wreathe  immortelles  to  the  memory  of  the  patriot, 
whose  truth  will  not  be  doubted,  whose  honesty  cannot 
be  impeached. 

During  the  afternoon  of  the  day  the  President  left 
the  Executive  Mansion,  the  house  in  which  he  was  a 
visitor  was  crowded  to  overflowing  with  friends  and  ad- 
mirers who  gathered  about  the  members  of  his  family 
to  express  their  attachment.  For  two  weeks  the  same 
scene  was  re-enacted,  and  day  and  night  the  numerous 


CLOSING    SCENES.  597 

callers  crowded  the  spacious  dwelling.  One  continued 
ovation  of  people  of  every  political  party  assured  them 
of  their  popularity,  too  wide-spread  to  be  circumscribed 
by  party  lines.  Behold  them,  reader,  as  they  were  seen 
that  last  ni^rht  in  Washington  !  The  Invalid  wife  is  in 
her  room,  too  feeble  to  walk,  but  surrounded  by  hearts 
softened  and  eyes  moistened  at  the  prospect  of  seeing 
her  no  more.  Mrs.  Patterson  is  bidding  a  farewell  to  the 
sorrowing  band  of  employes  who  liave  asked  as  a  last  favor 
for  a  photograph,  and  she  makes  the  gift  the  more  accept- 
able by  presenting  them  with  pictures  of  all  the  family, 
accompanied  by  her  deeply  felt  and  eloquently  expressed 
thanks  for  faithful  services  and  personal  friendship. 
Ever  and  anon  the  familiar  face  of  a  servant  appears, 
and  is  not  disappointed  in  the  welcome  received,  or  the 
parting  token  of  well-merited  reward  for  faithful  ser- 
vices. Flowers,  "  recalling  all  life's  wine  and  honey/' 
shed  their  aroma  through  space,  and  soften  by  their  del- 
icate beauty  the  feelings  of  all  kindly  natures. 

Time  unheeded  passes,  and  yet  the  advent  of  callers 
forbids  the  weaned  eyes  to  close,  or  the  final  prepara- 
tions to  be  made.  With  a  hand  raw  and  swollen  from 
the  hand-shakings  in  Baltimore  a  few  days  before,  Mr. 
Johnson  stands  placid,  earnest,  and  deeply  interested  in 
the  final  words  of  all.  The  lateness  of  the  hour,  not 
the  last  of  the  stream  of  visitors  ended  the  affecting 
scene,  and  a  weary  but  happy  household  slept  at  last, 
and  their  public  life  in  Washington  was  ended. 


XXIV, 

MARY    STOVER. 

The  second  daughter  of  President  Johnson  was  mar- 
ried in  April,  1852,  to  Mr.  Daniel  Stover,  of  Carter 
county,  East  Tennessee,  He  died  December  18,  1864, 
leavinof  her  with  three  small  children. 

Mrs.  Stover  remained  at  home  after  the  removal  of 
her  father's  family  to  Washington  until  the  last  of 
August,  and  then,  accompanied  by  her  interesting 
family,  took  up  her  residence  in  the  White  House. 

Said  a  newspaper  correspondent  of  her :  "Visitors  at 
the  White  House  during  the  past  two  or  three  years 
may  retain  the  memory  of  a  dignified,  statuesque 
blonde,  with  a  few  very  fine  points  which,  a  fashionable 
butterfly  once  said,  would  make  any  woman  a  belle 
if  she  only  knew  how  to  make  the  most  of  them.  Mrs. 
Stover  never  became  a  star  in  fashionable  circles,  and 
now  that  she  has  left  the  gay  capital,  perhaps  for  a 
life-time,  she  is  remembered  by  those  who  knew  her 
best  as  a  charming  companion  of  the  domestic  fireside,  a 
true  daughter  and  judicious  mother.'* 

During  the  administration  of  President  Johnson,  the 
White  House  was  brightened  by  the  glad,  happy  faces 
of  children,  and  for  the  first  time  since  its  occupation 
they  became  a  part  of  the  society  of  the  House,  and  ex- 
erted a  powerful  social  influence  outside.  Nothing 
(59S) 


I 


CHILDREN    IN    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  599 

afforded  their  litde  friends  more  pleasure  than  to  be  in- 
vited to  the  President's  House,  and  the  agreeable 
manners  of  the  hostesses  and  hosts  rendered  their  visits 
always  delightful. 

Mrs.  Stover's  litde  trio,  and  her  sister's  son  and 
daughter,  were  an  attraction  not  to  be  resisted ;  and 
nothing  pleased  old  acquaintances  more  than  to  be 
invited  into  their  private  apartments,  where  the  games 
and  plays  of  the  young  people  interested  more  sedate 
heads.  During  the  day,  writing  and  music  lessons 
hushed  their  merry  voices,  and  the  tasks  of  indulgent 
mothers  occupied  reasonable  spaces;  but  after  the  even- 
ing meal  and  the  return  of  the  boys  from  out-door 
sports,  the  merriment  began  to  the  infinite  delight  of 
every  one.  Strangers  who  at  the  formal  receptions  saw 
the  stately,  sometimes  haughty  appearing  daughter  re- 
ceiving with  quiet  grace  the  many  who  drew  near  for  the 
inevitable  shake  of  the-  hand,  little  knew  the  sociability 
and  good  nature  hidden  beneath  her  calm  exterior. 

It  was  a  source  of  enjoyment  and  much  laughter  to 
Mrs.  Stover's  friends  to  watch  her  actions  on  social  oc- 
casions, especially  when  her  sister  was  not  present. 
Like  a  statue  the  first  part  of  the  evening,  with  a  look 
of  resignation  on  her  face  irresistible,  she  would  gravely 
return  the  salutations  proffered,  and  resume  her  forlorn 
expression  as  soon  as  the  persons  passed  on,  only  to  be 
addressed  again  by  other  strangers,  whose  names  their 
owners  sometimes  forgot  and  she  rarely  ever  heard. 
Much  sympathy  she  would  receive   from   kind-hearted 


600  MARY    STOVER. 

acquaintances  who  supposed  her  wearied,  until  the  band 
struck  up  the  last  air,  and  then  they  would  be  astonished 
at  the  glad  light  in  her  eye  and  the  fervor  with  which 
she  would  bow  them  out.  Bantering  did  no  good,  nor 
orood-natured  rebukes  from  the  many  spies  who  enjoyed 
her  agony  and  deprecated  her  evident  regret  at  parting. 
Often  as  she  performed  the  task,  she  acted  over  her 
amusing  role  ;  and  the  last  time  she  assisted  at  a  recep- 
tion, before  her  departure  for  her  home,  her  penetrating 
eye  discovered  the  suppressed  smile,  which  broadened 
into  hearty  laughter  as  she  tried  to  suffer  meekly  the 
infliction  she  would  bear  no  more  ;  but  true  to  habit, 
she  expressed  her  farewells  with  so  much  impressiveness 
that  old  habitues  detected  her  and  the  old  suspicion  was 
aroused  as  to  her  sincerity.  Long  after  the  lights  in  the 
parlors  were  out,  she  repeated  her  experiences  up-stairs 
to  a  friend,  and  congratulated  herself  that  she  was  re- 
lieved from  the  only  irksome  task  connected  with  her 
life  there. 

It  was  from  no  want  of  appreciation  or  just  estimate 
of  her  position,  but  an  unfeigned  diffidence  which  she 
could  not  overcome,  which  kept  her  from  mingling  in  the 
society  of  the  Capital.  And  perhaps  a  feeling  that  she 
was  not  understood,  developed  this  disinclination  to 
meet  strangers.  To  persons  to  whom  she  was  at- 
tracted, she  was  gay  and  affectionate,  full  of  interest  and 
thoroughly  devoid  of  affectation.  Her  children  imbibed 
this  trait,  and  none  ever  saw  evidences  of  deceitfulness 
on   the  part  of  any  member  of  the  family.     A  native 


RECOLLECTIONS    OF    HER    IN    WASHINGTON.  60I 

Strong  sense,  called  common,  but  in  fact  a  rarity,  enabled 
her  to  discern  the  true  merits  of  individuals,  and  in  her 
conduct  toward  others  to  recoo^nize  the  truth  of  her 
father's  motto,  that 

"  Worth  makes  the  man,  the  want  of  it  the  fellow." 

To  devise  new  means  of  enjoyment  for  her  children, 
and  provide  for  their  mental  and  bodily  needs,  was  her 
first  thought,  and  each  day  was  spent  with  them  at  some 
one  of  their  duties,  often  at  their  dancing  school,  again 
overlooking  their  efforts  at  writing,  never  so  well  con- 
tent as  when  performing  some  conscientious  duty.  It 
was  in  this  character  she  made  so  many  love  her,  and 
people  who  never  knew  her  until  she  went  to  Washing- 
ton, were  never  weary  of  praising  the  young  mother, 
who  so  unaffectedly  acted  her  part  in  the  high  station  to 
which  she  was  called. 

Recollections  of  Mrs.  Stover  will  not  outlive  the 
changes  of  time  in  the  bosoms  of  the  "  society  "  people, 
who  tried  so  vainly  to  enlist  her  in  their  set ;  but  the 
sewing-women  and  trades-people,  the  attaches  of  the 
White  House,  in  all  capacities,  and  the  servants  who 
served  her  four  years,  will  never  forget  her  generous 
liberality  of  manners  and  means  ;  her  polite  civilities  to 
all  who  approached  her,  and  the  evident  interest  she 
took  in  their  affairs,  won  her  their  lastino-  reofards.  The 
night  before  she  left  for  her  Southern  home  several  days 
previous  to  the  departure  of  the  President  and  members 
of  the  family,  the  servants  who  had  learned  to  appreciate 


602  MARY    STOVER. 

her  friendship,  wept   unrestrainedly  as   they  bade    her 
and  her  children  a  last  good-by. 

The  house  was  lonelier  after  her  departure,  and  the 
voices  of  her  little  ones  gladden  the  ears  no  more  of 
those  so  long-  accustomed  to  hear  their  noisy  gambols. 
No  President  ever  before  had  in  the  White  House  so 
many  children,  or  as  youthful  ones  as  were  the  five 
grandchildren  of  President  Johnson,  nor  will  there  ever 
be  a  briohter  band  there  ao^ain. 


MmgoTDXTSSBS  So  ©BAW^' 


XXV. 

JULIA   DENT   GRANT. 

The  inauguration  of  General  Grant  as  President  of 
the  United  States  placed  his  wife  in  the  exalted  social 
position  of  Mistress  of  the  White  House.  Mrs.  Grant's 
first  receptio  on  the  4th  of  March,  1869,  marked  the 
passing  away  of  just  fourscore  years  since  Mrs.  Wash- 
ington so  gracefully  dispensed  the  ceremonious  hospi- 
tality of  the  Executive  Mansion. 

Her  husband  being  the  youngest  man  who  has  occu- 
pied the  Presidential  office,  he  consequently  carried  with 
him  into  the  White  House  the  novelty  of  a  family  of 
youthful  children,  and  a  wife  who  was  still  possessed  of 
the  ambition  to  shine  in  society,  and  who  enjoyed  the 
blandishments  and  excitements  of  high  social  position. 

The  prestige  of  General  Grant's  military  reputation 
added  increased  lustre  to  his  new  position,  and,  conse- 
quently, could  but  render  any  triumph  of  political  life 
the  more  signal,  since  his  experiences  had  been  of  a 
widely  different  character.  Upon  Mrs.  Grant,  therefore^ 
devolved  the  pleasure  of  performing  a  twofold  part,  in 
the  discharge  of  which  the  people  of  this  country  from 
the  beginning  have  desired  her  entire  success.  Unob- 
trusively and  quietly  she  entered  upon  her  duties  as 
hostess  of  the  W^hite  House,  and  devoted  her  attention 
as  in  the   past  to  her  husband's  interests.     She  enter- 

(603) 


604  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

tained  personal  friends  and  relatives  in  large  numbers, 
and  not  one  of  her  old  acquaintances  was  neglected  or 
overlooked  by  her  in  those  her  days  of  unbounded  pros- 
perity and  happiness.  Very  kindly  the  press  of  the 
nation  referred  to  her,  and  always,  upon  every  occasion, 
she  so  conducted  herself  as  to  dignify  the  name  she 
bears,  and  to  gratify  her  countrywomen.  As  wife  and 
mother  she  is  greatly  admired,  and  in  both  these  rela- 
tions she  is  a  credit  to  the  sex  and  an  honor  to  the 
nation  she  has  represented  so  well.  The  moral  atmos- 
phere of  the  Presidential  Mansion  was  a  matter  of  con- 
gratulation to  the  American  people,  and  they  do  not 
forget  that  the  personal  influence  of  Mrs.  Grant  had 
much  to  do  with  impressing  this  characteristic  of  her 
husband's  administration  upon  the  world  at  large.  She 
is  essentially  a  good  woman,  and  as  daughter,  sister, 
wife,  and  mother,  she  has  been  all  that  could  be  desired, 
and  has  in  an  eminent  degree  fulfilled  the  promise  of 
her  early  years,  and  the  predictions  then  made  for  her 
by  her  friends. 

Mrs.  Grant  is  a  Missourian  by  birth,  and  her  early 
years  were  spent  on  her  father's  farm,  Whitehaven  (now 
the  property  of  her  husband),  near  St.  Louis.  Her 
father.  Judge  Dent,  was  a  man  of  position  and  impor- 
tance, and  his  son  was,  at  the  time  now  referred  to,  a 
cadet  at  West  Point.  Through  her  brother  Miss  Dent 
made  the  acquaintance  of  his  classmate,  and  in  the 
course  of  events  very  naturally  this  young  couple,  mu- 
tually pleased  with  each  other,  plighted  their  troth.     The 


MARRIED    IN    1 848.  605 

match  was  not  particularly  pleasing  to  the  parents  of 
Miss  Julia,  and  it  was  with  no  little  satisfaction  that  they 
saw  the  young  officer  ordered  to  frontier  duty  with  the 
army  under  General  Taylor.  Once  out  of  sight  they 
hoped  that  their  daughter's  feelings  would  undergo  a 
change,  and  that  she  eventually  would  make  a  more 
brilliant  match.  But  events  occurred  which  endeared 
him  to  the  family,  and  when,  to  crown  all,  young  Grant 
saved  the  life  of  Lieutenant  Dent  in  Mexico,  the  objec' 
tions  of  the  family  gave  way  and  they  unconditionally 
surrendered.  The  constancy  of  the  young  people  was 
rewarded  after  an  engagement  of  five  years,  when,  on 
the  22d  of  August,  1S48,  they  were  married.  The  wed- 
ding took  place  at  Judge  Dent's  residence  in  St.  Louis, 
and  a  merry  one  it  was  to  all  concerned.  After  the  fes- 
tivities the  young  bride  accompanied  her  husband  to 
Sackett's  Harbor,  on  Lake  Ontario,  and  after  a  stay 
there  of  six  months,  removed  with  him  to  Detroit,  where 
he  was  stationed  for  more  than  two  years.  They  kept 
house  in  a  little  vine-covered  cottage  near  the  barracks, 
and  lived  in  the  most  unpretentious  style.  During  their 
residence  in  Detroit,  Mrs.  Grant  made  a  visit  to  her 
parents  in  St.  Louis,  and  during  her  stay  their  first  son, 
now  Lieut.-Colonel  Fred.  D.  Grant,  was  born.  Two 
years  later,  and  while  the  father  was  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  Ulysses,  the  second  son,  was  born  at  the  residence 
of  his  paternal  grandfather,  in  Bethel,  Ohio.  The  other 
children  born  of  this  union  are  Nellie,  the  only  daughter, 
and  Jesse.:   the  former  in  August,   1855;  the  latter  in 


6o6  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

1858.  Both  of  tliese  were  born  at  their  grandfather 
Dent's  country  home,  near  St.  Louis,  the  birthplace  of 
their  mother. 

After  Captain  Grant's  resignation,  in  1854,  he  re- 
turned to  Missouri,  poor  and  disheartened,  and  with  no 
prospects  before  him.  His  father-in-law,  to  assist  him, 
gave  his  wife  a  farm  of  sixty  acres,  and  her^  for  several 
years  he  fought  poverty  with  his  plough  and  axe — poor 
weapons,  indeed,  for  one  born  to  wield  the  sword,  and 
educated  in  a  military  school.  Of  course  he  failed,  and 
leaving  "  Hardscrabble,"  the  tide  which  he  had  himself 
given  to  the  scene  of  such  hard  and  unrequited  labors, 
he  entered  the  real  estate  office  of  a  cousin  of  his  wife's 
in  St.  Louis.     He  beoran   his  career  as  assent  without  a 

o  o 

hope  of  success,  and  but  for  his  family  would  doubtless 
have  thrown  up  the  position  in  despair.  Nothing  sus- 
tained him  in  all  these  years  of  bitter  adversity  and 
uncongenial  surroundings  but  the  hopefulness  of  his 
wife  and  the  unaffected  and  unchanCTino^  faith  she  had  in 
him.  It  nerved  him  to  renewed  effort,  and  animated 
him  with  fresh  zeal  each  time  that  he  faltered  in  his 
rough  pathway.  Her  affection  was  appreciated  by  him 
in  return,  and  his  tenderness  and  fidelity  was  such  that 
to  them  poverty  was  less  terrible  to  bear  than  it  was  to 
their  friends  to  witness.  But  there  were  four  little 
mouths  to  feed,  and  the  father  felt  that  yet  greater  effort 
must  be  made  for  them.  His  wife  did  all  the  work  of 
their  home,  and  yet  with  the  most  frugal  care  he  could 
not  meet  his  expenses. 


"  IIARDSCKAHBLE.  607 

In  the  spring-  of  i860  he  paid  a  visit  to  his  father  at 
Covington,  Kentucky,  to  take  counsel  with  him  concern- 
ing his  future,  and  to  plan  some  new  way  to  struggle 
for  bread.  His  father  owned  a  valuable  business  at 
Galena,  where  two  younger  brothers  were  making 
money,  and  into  this  establishment  went  the  unfortunate 
ex-captain  01;^  a  salary  of  six  hundred  dollars  a  year. 
Moving  his  little  family  to  Galena,  he  commenced  work 
in  the  tannery  which  has  since  been  made  famous  by  his 
association  with  it.  Poverty  went  with  him  to  his  new 
home,  and  what  had  been  "hardscrabble  "  on  the  little 
farm,  and  In  St.  Louis,  was  hardscrabble  still;  he  could 
not  meet  expenses.  Twice  his  salary  was  increased,  yet 
he  could  not  afford  to  keep  any  help,  and  his  wife  was 
maid  of  all  work,  and  nurse  and  teacher  of  her  children 
as  well. 

The  business  did  not  grow  more  congenial  to  the 
husband,  though  he  tried  his  best  to  do  his  duty  in  it, 
and  worked  many  times  as  hard  as  would  have  been 
necessary  had  he  loved  his  task.  Possibly,  one  reason 
of  his  unpleasant  position  was  due  to  the  fact  that 
his  brother,  who  was  thirteen  years  his  junior,  was  his 
employer,  and  as  the  success  of  the  business  was  due 
to  the  enterprise  of  this  brother  and  another  still 
younger,  the  place  he  held,  and  which  he  could  not 
satisfactorily  fill,  grew  daily  more  disagreeable  and  un- 
pleasant. 

The  twelfth  of  April,  1861,  the  day  of  the  fall  of  Fort 
Sumter,  and  the  death-knell  of  slavery,  was  the  turning 


6o8  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

point  in  the  life  of  Captain  Grant,  as  it  was  to  many 
thousands  of  others,  both  North  and  South.  But  to  no 
one  man  in  the  nation  has  it  proven  of  such  personal 
significance  as  to  him. 

He  was  soon  appointed  captain  of  a  volunteer  com- 
pany raised  in  Galena ;  afterwards  was  made  colonel, 
and  later,  through  Gov.  Washburne's  influence,  he  re- 
ceived the  appointment  of  brigadier-general.  From 
this  time  he  rapidly  rose  to  distinction  and  recognition. 
Mrs.  Grant  and  the  children  were  at  her  father's  or 
visiting  his  father's  family  at  Covington,  during  these 
first  years  of  the  rebellion ;  she  caring  for  her  hus- 
band's honor  and  studying  his  interest  in  every  possible 
way. 

While  General  Grant  was  in  command  at  Cairo,  just 
after  the  battle  of  Belmont,  and  while  his  promotion  to 
a  major-generalship  was  being  discussed,  a  relation  of 
his  said  to  her :  "  Ulysses  may  get  along  as  brigadier, 
but  he  had  better  be  satisfied  with  that  and  not  seek  to 
rise  higher." 

o 

"  There  is  no  danger  of  his  reaching  a  position  above 
his  capacity,"  she  replied,  indignantly.  "  He  is  equal  to 
a  much  higher  one  than  this,  and  will  certainly  win  it  if 
he  lives."  And  this  was  the  recognition  she  always 
gave  him,  and  to  this  fearless  advocate  of  his  worth  he 
was  indebted  for  much  of  the  material  help  he  had  re- 
ceived from  both  his  and  her  family.  In  this  time  of 
success — though  as  well  of  anxiety — she  repeatedly  de- 
fended him,  and  more  than  once  brought  smiles  to  the 


SHARES    HER    HUSDAND's    MILITARY    RENOWN.  609 

faces  of  her  friends  by  saying:  "Mr.  Grant  has  great 
natural  abiHty,  he  would  fill  any  public  position  well  if 
he  once  had  a  chance." 

After  the  capture  of  Fort  Donelson,  while  yet  the 
country  was  ringing  with  praises  of  her  husband's  ex- 
ploits, she  visited  him  at  that  point,  and  later  she  paid 
him  a  visit  at  Jackson,  Mississippi.  Just  after  the  sur- 
render of  Vicksbur-j  she  was  in  .St.  Louis,  where  she 
was  serenaded  by  a  great  concourse  of  people,  and  in 
response  to  their  repeated  deniand  she  appeared  on  the 
balcony  of  the  hotel,  leaning  on  the  arm  of  General 
Strong.  The  moment  she  came  in  view  the  people 
oreeted  her  with  vociferous  cheers.  She  was  beofinnine 
to  be  made  aware  of  the  e.xalted  place  her  husband  had 
won  in  the  admiration  of  the  people,  and  for  the  first 
time  she  was  sharing  with  him  the  dignity  of  the  place 
to  which  he  had  risen. 

Several  weeks  were  spent  with  her  husband  at  Vicks- 
burg,  and  then,  when  his  head-quarters  were  established 
at  Nashville,  she  removed  her  children  there,  and  re- 
mained in  that  city  until  after  his  appointment  as  lieu- 
tenant-(reneral,  makincr  during  the  time  a  visit  to  St. 
Louis. 

The  implicit  confidence  Mrs.  Grant  reposed  in  her 
husband  has  long  ago  been  rewarded,  and  there  is  now 
no  one  to  question  his  ability  as  a  military  officer.  But 
there  was  a  time  when  her  faith  in  him  was  in  marked 
contrast  to  the  opinions  entertained  by  his  and  lier 
relatives.  They  had  seen  him  fail  at  farming  and  in  the 
39 


6lO  JUl.IA    DENT    GRANT. 

leather  business,  and  a  man,  in  their" opinion,  who  could 
not  make  money  in  either  of  "these  pursuits,  was  not 
likely  to  reach  success  in  anything. 

But  his  wife  was  loyal  to  him,  and,  when  asked  by  a 
party  of  ladies  her  opinion  concerning  her  husband's 
new  responsibilities  and  prospects,  just  before  the  battle 
of  the  Wilderness,  she  replied  : 

"  Mr.  Grant  has  succeeded  thus  far,  wherever  the 
Government  has  placed  him,  and  he  will  do  the  best  he 
can." 

"  Do  you  think  he  will  capture  Richmond?" 

"Yes,  before  he  gets  through:  Mr,  Grant  always  was 
a  very  obstinate  man." 

With  the  return  of  peace  General  Grant  settled  in 
Washington  City,  where  his  head-quarters  as  commander- 
in-chief  of  the  army  were  established.  His  family  were, 
for  the  first  time  in  many  years,  again  with  him,  and 
they  greatly  appreciated  the  three  years  of  comparative 
rest  they  enjoyed.  But  they  were  destined  to  play  a 
still  higher  part  in  the  national  life.  General  Grant, 
the  idol  of  the  people  after  Lincoln,  and  the  most  suc- 
cessful o-eneral  of  the  aoe  was  elected  President  of  the 
United  States. 

Mrs,  Grant  parted  reluctantly  with  her  own  home  and 
prepared  to  take  up  her  abode  in  the  White  House,  but 
it  was  not  before  the  fall  of  the  year  that  she  settled 
down  to  the  routine  life  there,  and  prepared  to  perform 
the  duties  expected  of  her. 

The  first  three  years  passed  away  pleasantly  and  with- 


DEBUT    OF    MISS    NELLIE.  6l  1 

out  any  very  great  eclat.  The  President's  household  was 
accounted  an  eminently  happy  one,  and  there  was  al- 
ways in  the  house  some  one  or  more  of  his  own  or  his 
wife's  kindred.  But  the  children  were  at  school,  and 
there  was  less  of  g-ayety  than  when,  later,  Miss  Nellie 
made  her  debut  into  society,  and  the  young  cadet  son 
had  returned  from  West  Point,  and  was  his  sister's 
escort  and  companion. 

The  family  travelled  a  great  deal  more  perhaps  than 
that  of  any  other  of  the  Presidents.  Every  summer 
they  spent  at  the  sea-shore,  and  now  Long  Branch  is 
their  permanent  home  in  the  warm  season.  The  chil- 
dren travelled  abroad  during  their  father's  administra- 
tion, the  daughter  receiving  the  most  distinguished 
attentions  while  in  England  and  elsewhere ;  and  when 
at  home  their  young  friends  gathered  about  them,  eager 
to  enjoy  the  pleasure  of  their  company  and  the  hospi- 
talities of  their  splendid  home. 

But  the  event  that  drew  the  American  people  to  the 
President  and  his  household,  as  nothing  else  could  have 
done,  was  the  marriage  of  his  only  daughter.  Mrs. 
Grant  and  Nellie  became,  from  the  moment  her  enofaoe- 
ment  was  announced,  the  most  interesting  persons  in 
the  nation.  What  will  the  mother  do  for  her  child  that 
shall  be  befitting  the  occasion  ?  was  the  question  the 
young  and  old  of  the  sex  asked  of  each  other  all  over 
America.  And  crrave  old  men,  who  had  lone  aero  for- 
gotten  the  excitements  of  their  own  wedding  days, 
caught  the  prevailing  infection  and  became  interested  in 


6l2  JULIA    DENT    GRANT, 

the  sole  daughter  of  the  house,  soon  to  be  an  Inmate  of 
it  no  ioneer.  Mothers'  hearts  ached  with  Mrs.  Grant's 
over  the  thoughts  of  the  long  separation,  for  Nellie  was 
to  marry  an  Englishman  and  live  in  England;  and  when 
at  last  the  time  drew  near  for  the  nuptials,  the  entire 
nation  became  interested  spectators  of  an  event  which 
they  could  not  but  feel  was  the  most  pleasing,  and  yet 
the  most  sad  act  of  all  the  grand  drama  of  the  double 
administration. 

Nellie  Grant's  was  the  seventh  wedding  which  had 
taken  place  in  the  White  House.  President  Monroe's 
daughter,  Marie,  and  President  Tyler's  daughter,  Lizzie, 
among  others,  had  passed  out  from  it  as  brides,  and 
now,  more  than  thirty  years  later,  this  youngest  of  the 
Presidents  saw  his  only  daughter  wedded  In  the  famous 
East  Room,  on  Thursday,  May  2 1  st,  1 874.  The  wedding 
took  place  under  circumstances  of  peculiar  brilliancy. 
Mr.  Algernon  Sartoris,  the  sjroom,  was,  at  the  time  of  his 
marriage,  twenty-three  years  of  age,  and  Nellie  was 
nineteen.  He  had  been  educated  in  EnMand  and  Ger- 
many,  and  was  a  son  of  Mr.  Edward  Sartoris,  of  Hamp- 
shire, England,  and  his  wife,  Adelaide  Kemble,  daughter 
of  Charles,  and  sister  of  Fannie  Kemble. 

Nellie  Grant  had  led  an  exceptionally  happy  life,  and 
for  ten  years  previous  to  her  marriage  had  been  the 
recipient  of  the  most  distinguished  attentions.  Her 
father's  position,  and  his  rapidly  increasing  wealth,  had 
enabled  him  to  gratify  every  wish  of  his  daughter,  and 
as  if  to  reward  the  fidelity  of  his  wife  in  years  past,  he 


^;  &MA3ST  SAB.Tu-BJM, 


MARRIAGE   OF    MISS    NELLIE.  613 

>-jrroiinded  her  children  with  every  earthly  blessing.  It 
seemed  only  strange  that  one  so  situated,  and  withal  so 
young,  should  consent  to  marry  and  retire  to  private 
life.  But  the  love  affair,  begun  on  the  Russia,  was  des- 
tined to  terminate  auspiciously,  and  eighteen  months 
afterwards  the  young  couple  were  united.  The  wedding 
was  the  finest  ever  known  in  Washinc{ton,  and  was  the 
theme  of  newspaper  comment  both  in  this  country  and 
Europe.  All  that  affection,  wealth  and  high  social  posi- 
tion could  devise  were  combined  to  make  it  an  event 
that  should  fittingly  express  the  love  and  pride  of  the 
parents  in  their  only  daughter. 

Not  more  than  two  hundred  guests  were  present,  but 
they  represented  the  officials  of  the  government  and 
their  families ;  the  army,  navy  and  marine  corps  and 
their  families;  the  diplomatic  corps  and  personal  friends. 
The  floral  decorations  of  the  house  were  superb,  those 
of  the  East  Room  being'  the  richest.  The  bridal  party 
was  accompanied  by  the  President  and  Mrs.  Grant,  and 
the  brothers  of  the  bride,  to  New  York,  from  which  port 
the  young  couple  sailed  for  England. 

The  summer  was  passed  by  the  President  and  Mrs. 
Grant  at  Long  Branch,  and  in  the  autumn  the  social  life 
of  the  White  House  was  resumed.  Colonel  Fred.  Grant 
introduced  his  bride  (Miss  Honore)  during  the  season, 
and  the  winter  passed  off  pleasantly,  though  the  daughter 
of  the  House  was  missed  sadly. 

The  eight  years'  social  administration  of  Mrs.  Grant 
was  characterized  by  great  elegance  and  dignity.     All 


6l4  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

official  and  social  observances  were  conducted  on  a  scale 
of  magnificence,  and  the  mansion  itself  was  richly  fur- 
nished— costly  plate  and  decorations  were  supplied,  and 
the  entertainments  were  on  a  more  elaborate  scale  than 
had  marked  previous  administrations.  Among  the  so- 
cial events  of  an  official  character  that  occurred  were 
receptions  and  state  dinners  In  honor  of  the  Duke  of 
Edinburgh,  of  England,  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis,  of 
Russia,  the  King  of  Kalakaua,  and  the  first  Chinese 
Ambassador.  The  official  entertainments  were  frequent, 
and  the  social  career  of  Mrs.  Grant  as  Lady  of  the 
White  House  closed  with  one  of  the  most  brilliant  re- 
ceptions ever  given  in  it.  After  leaving  the  White 
House,  ex-President  and  Mrs.  Grant  became  the 
guests  of  Secretary  and  Mrs,  Fish,  and  during  their 
stay  in  Washington  were  the  recipients  of  continued 
social  attentions. 

It  had  been  the  long-expressed  desire  of  General 
Grant  to  visit  Europe,  and  soon  after  the  close  of  his  ad- 
ministration he  began  the  preparations  for  an  extended 
journey.  Returning  from  a  visit  to  Galena,  he  arrived 
in  Philadelphia  a  week  previous  to  the  day  appointed 
for  the  departure  of  the  steamer,  and  with  Mrs.  Grant 
became  the  guests  of  George  Washington  Childs,  Esq. 
The  most  flattering  attentions  were  bestowed  upon  them. 
Military  parades,  public  receptions,  and  private  enter- 
tainments followed  each  other  in  quick  succession.  The 
vessel  selected  by  General  Grant  on  which  to  make  the 
voyage  was   the   "Indiana,"  one   of  the  only  American 


depariurp:  for  Europe.  615 

line  of  steamships  crossing  the  Atlantic  ocean.  On  the 
morning-  of  the  departure  Mr,  Chilcls  entertained  at 
breakfast  a  number  of  ijuests,  inchidlnir  the  late  Secre- 
tary  of  State,  Hon.  Hamilton  Fish,  General  Sherman, 
Governor  Hartranft,  and  others,  and  afterwards  the 
party,  augmented  by  the  presence  of  a  large  number  of 
prominent  gentlemen,  proceeded  down  the  Delaware. 
Mrs.  Grant,  accompanied  by  the  youngest  son,  Jesse, 
who  made  the  tour  with  them,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Childs, 
Mrs.  Sharp — Mrs.  Grant's  sister — and  many  other  ladies 
and  gendemen  were  taken  down  the  river  to  the 
"Indiana"  on  the  revenue  cutter  "Hamilton."  Arriving 
at  New  Castle  after  a  sail  of  thirty-five  miles,  the  voya- 
gers bade  adieu  to  their  friends  and  boarded  the 
steamer.  The  scenes  which  accompanied  the  ex-Presi- 
dent and  his  family  from  the  moment  of  leaving  the  hos- 
pitable mansion  of  Mr.  Childs  to  the  farewells  at  the 
vessel  were  such  as  never  before  had  been  witnessed  in 
this  country.  Thousands  of  people  lined  the  wharves 
and  the  air  resounded  with  their  cheers.  The  shipping 
was  gayly  decorated,  and  the  flags  of  all  nations  floated 
in  the  breeze.  Steam-whistles  blew  their  shrill  notes, 
and  salutes  were  thundered  forth  from  the  larofcr  vessels 
as  the  ex-President  and  his  friends  passed  down  the 
river  to  their  vessel.  The  party  sailed  on  the  17th  of 
May,  1877,  and  from  the  moment  of  landing  on  English 
soil  they  were  welcomed  w'lth  generous  hospitality  by  all 
the  nations  they  visited.  Over  the  continent  of  Europe, 
through  Egypt,  the  Holy  Land,  and  back  through  Italy, 


6.6  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

Spain,  Ireland  and  India,  to  China  and  Japan  they  trav- 
elled, and  were  everywhere  the  objects  of  distinguished 
hospitalities.  The  return  voyage  to  San  Francisco  was 
completed  in  September,  1879,  and  the  reception  at  San 
Francisco  was  of  such  magnitude  and  enthusiasm  as  to 
greatly  surprise  the  ex-President.  The  people,  without 
respect  to  race  or  party,  joined  in  the  hearty  welcome 
home.  The  festivities  varied  each  day,  and  every  city 
in  the  Union  sent  invitations  to  the  ex-President  to 
extend  his  travels  to  all  parts  of  his  own  country.  One 
of  the  pleasantest  incidents  connected  with  their  stay  in 
San  Francisco  was  the  visit  of  a  delegation  of  the  Chi- 
nese of  that  city  to  General  Grant,  and  the  presentation 
to  him  of  an  address  and  a  scroll  of  worked  silk.  Gen- 
eral Grant,  in  acknowledging  the  great  kindness  and  hos- 
pitality shown  him  by  the  people  and  authorities  of  China, 
expressed  the  hope  that  the  country,  by  breaking  down 
the  seclusion  in  which  she  had  been  shrouded  for  ages, 
would  continue  to  draw  nearer  to  her  the  trade  and  sym- 
pathy of  the  civilizf.'d  world.  The  head  of  the  delega- 
tion then  presented  to  Mrs.  Grant  a  small  ivory  casket, 
saying  that  she  had  done  much  to  break  down  the  spirit 
of  domestic  exclusiveness  that  reigns  in  China,  and  that 
the  Chinese  in  San  Francisco  desired  to  thank  her  for  it. 
This  circumstance  recalls  an  exceptional  honor  paid 
Mrs.  Grant  while  in  China,  an  honor  the  like  of  which  no 
other  woman  has  ever  shared.  And  though  she  received 
distinoruished  attentions  in  all  her  travels,  she  remem- 
bers  this  as  one  of  the  most  marked  and  most  pleasant 


THE    viceroy's    DINNER.  617 

incidents  of  her  joiirneyings  over  the  world.  The  occa- 
sion was  a  dinner  given  by  the  wife  of  the  Viceroy  of 
China.  In  view  of  the  fact  of  the  exclusiveness  of  the 
Chinese  as  a  race,  and  the  position  of  woman  in  that 
country,  it  is  one  of  the  events  of  the  age.  Mr.  John 
Russell  Younfj,  the  historian  of  the  travellers,  2:ives  an 
entertaining  description  of  it,'-'  from  which  is  taken  the 
following  excerpt : 

"  It  was  a  radical  thing  for  the  Viceroy  to  throw  open 
the  doors  of  his  house  and  brin^:  the  foreign  barbarian 
to  his  hearthstone.  This  dinner  was  arranged  for  our 
last  night  in  Tientsin,  and  in  honor  of  Mrs.  Grant.  The 
principal  European  ladies  in  the  colony  were  invited. 
Some  of  these  ladies  have  lived  in  Tientsin  for  years 
and  had  never  seen  the  wife  of  the  Viceroy — had  never 
seen  him  except  through  the  blinds  of  the  window  of  his 
chair.  The  announcement  that  the  Viceroy  had  really  in- 
vited Mrs.  Grant  to  meet  his  wife,  and  European  ladies 
to  be  in  the  company,  was  even  a  more  extraordinary 
event  than  the  presence  of  General  Grant  or  the  arrival 
of  the  band.  Society  rang  with  a  discussion  of  the 
question  which,  since.  Mother  Eve  introduced  it  to  the 
attention  of  her  husband,  has  been  the  absorbing  theme 
of  civilization — what  shall  we  wear  ?  I  have  heard  many 
expositions  on  this  theme,  but  in  Tientsin  it  was  new 
and  important.  Should  the  ladies  go  in  simple  Spartan 
style :  in  muslin  and  dimity,  severely  plain  and  colorless, 


*  "Around  the  World  with  General  Grant." 


6l8  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

trustlnof  alone  to  their  crraces  and  charms,  and  thus  show 
their  Chinese  sister  the  beauty  that  exists  in  beauty  un- 
adorned ;  or  should  they  go  in  all  their  glory,  with  gems 
and  silks  and  satins  and  the  latest  development  of  French 
genius  in  the  arrangement  of  their  hair?  It  was  really 
an  important  question,  and  not  without  a  bearing,  some 
of  us  thouglit,  on  the  future  domestic  peace  of  the 
Viceroy.  The  arguments  on  either  side  were  conducted 
with  ability,  and  I  lament  my  inability  to  do  them  justice, 
and  hand  them  over  to  the  consideration  of  American 
ladies  at  home.  The  discussion  passed  beyond  me  and 
entered  into  the  sphere  of  metaphysics,  and  became  a 
mor?l,  spiritual — almost  a  theological  theme,  and  was 
decided  finally  in  favor  of  the  resources  of  civilization. 
The  ladies  went  in  all  the  glory  of  French  fashion  and 
taste. 

"  No  gentlemen  were  invited  to  the  Viceroy's  dinner, 
and  the  Viceroy  himself  did  not  entertain  his  guests.  It 
was  arransfed  that  the  ladies  should  cro  in  chairs.  Of 
ladies  there  were  in  all,  Mrs.  Grant,  Mrs.  Detring,  Mrs. 
Denny,  Mrs.  Dillon,  Mrs.  Forrest,  Mrs.  Dorian,  and  Miss 
Denny.  It  was  a  distance  of  two  miles  to  the  Yamen, 
and  the  streets  were  filled  with  a  curious  multitude 
watching  the  procession  of  chairs,  and  having  their  own 
thoughts,  we  can  well  fancy,  at  this  spectacle  of  the  vice- 
regal home  invaded  by  the  wives  of  foreign  barbarians. 
It  was  quite  dark  when  the  ladies  reached  the  Yamen. 
They  alighted  in  a  courtyard  illuminated  with  lanterns, 
and    crowded  with    officials   in   their  quaint  costumes. 


I 


THE    RECEPTION.  619 

The  band  of  the  'Richmond'  had  been  sent  ahead  by 
Captain  Johnson,  and  as  our  ladies  arrived  they  were 
welcomed  with  the  familiar  notes  of  home  music.  The 
Viceroy  also  had  a  band,  and  the  musical  effect  of  the 
two  styles  of  music — the  Chinese  running-  largely  to 
gongs,  and  the  American  with  trumpet  and  drum — 
was  unique,  and  added  to  the  strangeness  of  the  cere- 
mony. 

"As  Mrs.  Grant,  who  was  in  the  first  chair,  descended, 
she  was  met  by  the  wife  of  the  Viceroy,  who  took  her 
hand  and  escorted  her  into  the  house.  The  other  ladies 
were  shown  in  by  one  of  the  missionary  ladies,  who  came 
to  act  as  interpreter.  They  passed  through  a  sort  of 
hall  into  a  small  library.  The  walls  of  this  library  were 
cut  up  into  pigeon-holes,  filled  with  Chinese  books  made 
of  soft,  tough  paper.  The  Viceroy's  wife  took  her  seat 
at  the  head  of  the  table,  and  as  each  lady  entered  she 
was  introduced  by  the  interpreter.  The  hosteL;s  arose 
and  shook  hands  with  each  in  cordial  European  fashion, 
with  perfect  grace,  and  as  though  it  had  been  her  custom 
all  her  life  to  use  this  form  of  salutation.  There  were 
two  other  ladies  of  the  vice-regal  family  present,  the 
daughter  of  the  Viceroy,  a  maiden  of  sixteen,  and  his 
daughter-in-law,  a  lady  of  twenty-three.  They  sat  at  the 
opposite  end  of  the  table  from  the  hostess,  looking  on 
with  curious  interest  at  the  company  of  foreign  ladies, 
the  first  they  had  ever  seen.  Still  they  restrained  their 
curiosity,  showing  no  wonder,  no  surprise,  and  received 
their  European  friends  with  as  much  ease  as  if   they 


620  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

had  been  accustomed  to  a  London  drawinof-room.  The 
daughter-in-law  of  the  Viceroy  was  dressed  in  subdued 
colors,  much  the  same  as  the  hostess,  but  the  maiden 
was  brilliantly  costumed  in  a  bright  pink  satin  jacket, 
and  crreen  satin  trousers,  the  whole  embroidered  with 
gold  thread,  and  silk  of  a  variety  of  colors.  At  every 
movement  she  tinkled  with  her  abundant  ornaments  of 
pearl  and  jade,  which  hung  in  long  pendants  from  her 
ears,  wrists,  fingers,  and  the  cord  of  her  fan.  She  wore 
two  lone  Sfold  finger-nail  shields  on  the  third  and  fourth 
finders  of  her  left  hand,  a  curious  ornament  made  neccs- 
sary  by  the  custom  of  high-bred  persons  in  China  of 
allowing  the  finger-nails  to  grow.  Both  of  the  young 
ladies  wore  their  hair  ornamented  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  wife  of  the  Viceroy. 

"The  company  sat  in  the  library  about  ten  minutes. 
During  this  time  they  were  served  with  strong  pale  tea, 
without  sugar  or  milk,  in  tiny  porcelain  cups.  Then,  at 
a  gesture  from  the  hostess,  the  ladies  arose  and  walked 
into  another  room,  a  larger  one,  the  hostess  conducting 
Mrs.  Grant.  Crow^ds  of  servants  swarmed  about,  and 
other  crowds  of  curious  persons  looked  in  at  the  win- 
dows and  doors  at  the  unusual  spectacle.  The  dining- 
room  was  furnished  in  European  fashion,  with  divans 
and  chairs.  A  chandelier  of  four  gas  jets  hung  over  the 
centre  of  the  table,  and  was  an  object  of  curiosity  to  all, 
as  Tientsin  has  not  yet  attained  to  the  blessing  of  gas. 
The  dinner  table  was  set  in  European  style,  with  silver 
and  French   china,  and  decorated  with  a  profusion  of 


THE    GUESTS    AND    THEIR    HOSTESS.  621 

flowers.  The  ladles  took  seats  according  to  the  rank 
of  their  husbands,  Mrs.  Grant  sittinqr  on  the  rleht  and 
Mrs.  Denny  on  the  left  of  the  hostess.  Each  of  the 
ladies  had  her  own  servant  who  waited  on  her.  The 
dinner  was  a  blending-  of  Chinese  and  European  cookery. 
First  came  a  European  course.  Then  came  a  Chinese 
course,  served  in  silver  cups  with  small  silver  ladles  and 
ivory  chopsticks.  Smaller  silver  cups  in  saucers  sat  at 
each  plate,  filled  with  the  warm  Chinese  wine  which  you 
find  at  every  dinner.  The  ladies  tasted  their  Chinese 
food  with  fortitude,  and  made  heroic  efforts  to  utilize  the 
chopsticks.  The  Chinese  ladies  partook  only  of  their 
own  food.  The  hostess  kept  up  a  conversation  with  all 
the  ladies.  First  she  asked  each  one  her  age,  which  in 
China  is  the  polite  thing  to  do.  I  have  no  information 
as  to  the;  responses  elicited  by  this  inquiry,  the  sources 
of  my  knowledge  failing  at  this  point.  Then  questions 
were  asked  as  to  the  number  of  children  in  the  families 
of  the  married  ladies,  and  the  age  of  each  child.  The 
younger  Chinese  ladies  of  the  party  sat  at  the  other  end 
of  the  table,  and  having  no  interpreter  made  themselves 
understood  by  signs — by  graceful  little  gestures  of  the 
hand,  nods,  questioning  eyes.  It  is  wonderful  how 
much  talk  can  be  done  by  pantomime,  and  the  Chinese 
ladies  wilh  their  quick  intelligence  soon  found  them- 
selves in  earnest  conversation  with  their  European 
friends.  During  the  dinner  there  was  a  Chinese  Punch 
and  Judy  .show,  and  the  noise  of  this  entertainment,  with 
the  chatter  of  the  servants,  and  the  curious  gazing  crowd 


62  2  JULTA    DENT    GRANT. 

who  never  left  the  doors  and  windows,  made  an  unceas- 
ing din.  China  has  democratic  customs  and  privileges 
which  are  never  invaded.  Whenever  General  Grant 
and  party  dined  as  the  guest  of  a  Chinaman,  in  Canton, 
or  Shanghai,  or  Tientsin,  it  was  always  in  presence  of  a 
multitude.  If  the  people  were  to  have  the  doors  closed 
upon  them,  even  the  doors  of  the  Mceroy,  it  would  make 
trouble.  And  now^  of  all  days  in  the  calendar  of  China, 
this  day  when  female  barbarians  are  welcomed  to  a 
nobleman's  house,  it  is  important  that  all  the  world 
should  stand  by  and  see  the  wonder. 

"The  hostess,  with  a  gesture  and  smile  of  welcome, 
drank  from  her  cup  of  warm  wine  a  toast  to  her  friends. 
The  ladies  sipped  their  wine  in  response.  This  aston- 
ished the  hostess,  who  had  been  told  that  it  was  the 
custom  of  barbarian  ladies  to  drink  their  glasses  dry. 
But  it  was  explained  that  while  some  ambitious  gentlemen 
in  foreign  society  ventured  upon  such  experiments,  the 
ladies  never  did.  The  hostess  wondered  at  this,  and 
seemed  to  think  that  somehow  it  would  be  more  like 
what  she  had  heard  if  the  ladies  drank  more  champagne, 
if  they  drained  their  glasses  and  turned  them  upside 
down.  Then  the  jewels  were  passed  from  hand  to  hand 
to  be  examined  by  the  Chinese  ladies.  This  study  of 
jewelry,  of  diamond  and  emerald,  of  ruby  and  turquoise, 
occupied  most  of  the  time  that  remained  to  the  dinner. 
Once  or  twice  the  tall  form  of  the  Viceroy  could  be  ob- 
served lookincr  over  the  heads  of  the  crowd  to  see  how 
his  wife   and   her   foreign  friends  were  enjoying  them- 


THE    SINGIN'G    AND    DANCING    OF    THE    GUESTS.        623 

selves.  When  observed  his  Excellency  withdrew.  Al- 
dioiigh  not  appearing  during  the  dinner,  nor  at  the  recep- 
tion before,  the  Viceroy  was  now  and  then  seen  moving 
about  among  the  curious  gazers,  evidently  anxious  about 
his  feast,  anxious  that  nothing  should  be  wanting  in 
honor  of  his  Qfuests. 

"After  the  dinner  the  party  went  into  another  room. 
Here  w'as  a  piano  which  had  been  brought  from  the 
foreign  settlement.  This  was  a  new  delight  to  the 
hostess,  who  had  never  seen  a  piano,  and  she  expressed 
her  pleasure  and  surprise.  One  of  the  pieces  was  a 
waltz,  a  merry  German  waltz,  and  two  of  the  ladies 
went  through  the  measures,  giving  variety  to  the  dance 
by  balancing  separately  with  one  arm  akimbo,  the  other 
holding  up  the  skirt,  then  twirling  away  to  different 
parts  of  the  room  and  coming  together  again.  This 
revelation  of  barbarian  customs  created  o;reat  astonish- 
ment,  and  when  the  dance  stopjDed  there  was  a  chorus 
of  approbation  from  the  Chinese,  as  if  they  had  discov- 
ered a  new  pleasure  in  the  world,  the  hostess  nodding 
and  smiling  with  more  energy  of  manner  than  she  had 
shown  during  the  evening.  This  performance  was  w^it- 
nessed  by  the  Viceroy,  who  perhaps  had  his  own 
thouofhts  as  a  far-seeino-  statesman  as  to  what  China 
would  become  if  German  music  ever  found  its  way  into 
Chinese  households,  and  mothers  and  maidens  gave  way 
to  the  temptations  of  the  waltz.  There  were  snatches 
of  singing,  one  of  the  ladies  who  had  an  expressive 
voice  w'arbling  some  roundelay  from  the  Tyrol.     This 


624  JULIA    DKNT    GRANT. 

created  another  sensation,  and  was  so  new,  and  strange, 
and  overwhelminof  that  the  Chinese  maiden  in  the  daz- 
zHng  pink  jacket  lost  her  Oriental  composure,  and  gave 
a  faint  start  and  laughed,  and  fearing  she  had  committed 
some  breach  of  propriety,  suddenly  recovered  herself 
and  coyly  looked  about  to  see  if  she  had  in  any  way 
criven  offence  to  her  barbarian  quests.  The  hostess, 
however,  sat  by  the  side  of  Mrs.  Grant  during  the  whole- 
performance,  and  looked  on  as  calmly  at  these  strange 
phenomena  of  an  unknown  civilization  as  if  she  had 
known  the  waltz  and  heard  Tyrolean  ditties  all  her  days. 
The  hostess,  with  high-bred  courtesy,  always  arose  when 
her  guests  did,  and  never  sat  down  until  they  were  seated. 
The  feet  of  the  Chinese  ladies  were  extremely  small — 
scarcely  more  than  two  or  three  inches  long — and  when 
they  walked  it  was  with  difficulty,  and  only  by  the  aid  of 
the  waiting-women  who  walked  behind.  A  Chinese  lady 
of  rank  does  nothing:  without  the  aid  of  servants.  If  she 
wishes  to  take  a  handkerchief  out  of  her  pocket  a  ser- 
vant performs  the  office.  But  during  the  whole  evening,  at 
every  phase  of  the  reception  and  the  entertainment,  the 
hostess  showed  a  self-possession  and  courtesy  that  might 
have  been  learned  in  the  drawing-rooms  of  Saint  Ger- 
main. She  took  pains  to  show  attention  to  every  one. 
When  the  time  came  to  leave  she  went  with  Mrs.  Grant 
to  her  chair.  When  the  others  left  she  took  her  leave 
(;f  them  at  the  door,  and  they  parted  with  good  wishes 
and  polite  little  speeches  of  thanks  and  welcome." 

Mrs.  Grant  has    the    distinction  of   havincj    travelled 


MRS.    GRANT    POPULAR    IX    SCCIETV.  625 

more  than  any  other  lady  who  has  graced  the  White 
House,  and  of  having  received  at  the  hands  of  for- 
eigners more  attention  than  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of  any 
other  American  lady.  In  her  tour  she  was  the  guest  of 
the  heads  of  the  government  in  all  countries,  and  par- 
ticipated iVi  hospitalities  of  crown  heads  and  the  repre- 
sentative nobility.  Her  life  from  the  period  when  her 
husband  became  the  victorious  general  of  the  army,  has 
been  one  of  high  social  rank,  and  the  years  as  they 
have  passed  have  brought  her  many  blessings.  She  has 
known  public  honors  and  domestic  happiness,  and  is  a 
most  fortunate  woman.  She  has  sought  her  chief 
pleasure  in  life  in  the  family  circle,  and  her  reward  has 
been  found  in  their  happiness.  The  White  House 
tmder  Mrs.  Grant's  social  administration  was  a  de- 
r.ghtful  home,  and  was  ever  the  abode  of  many  relatives 
and  friends  w^ho  shared  in  the  many  pleasures  it 
afforded.  An  atmosphere  of  pleasant  social  life  was 
felt  by  all  visitors  at  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  though 
Mrs.  Grant  was  not  particularly  fond  of  society,  her  stay 
in  the  White  House  is  remembered  as  a  period  of  great 
gayety  in  Washington.  She  was  identified  with  the 
events  of  the  administration  in  all  semi-official  ways, 
and  was  as  popular  in  society  as  any  of  the  women  who 
had  preceded  her.  A  wife  and  mother,  she  was  occupied 
with  the  duties  pertaining  to  domestic  relations,  and  divi- 
ded her  time  between  her  public  and  private  obligations. 
In  this  respect  of  having  two-fold  duties  to  perform  she  was 

like  all  the  wives  of  the  Presidents,  and  with  one  excep- 
40 


626  JULIA    DENT    GRANT. 

tion  the  White  House  has  known  no  lady  differently  sit- 
uated. Harriet  Lane  was  untrammelled  with  domestic 
cares  when  she  presided  there,  and  was  moreover  a  great 
belle.  Society  claimed  more  from  her  than  it  ever  did 
of  any  other  lady,  and  the  circumstances  attending  her 
life  there  made  it  the  most  marked  in  many  respects  that 
has  yet  been  chronicled.  Mrs.  Grant's  deep  interest  in 
the  success  of  her  husband,  and  her  commendable  desire 
to  have  her  countr)'^women  satisfied  with  her  administra- 
tion as  hostess,  were  motives  sufficiently  impelling  to 
incite  her  to  every  exertion  necessary  to  the  accomplish- 
ment of  her  purpose,  and  she  has  the  satisfaction  of 
knowing  that  her  career  was  approved.  In  her  domes- 
ticity, which  is  her  leading  characteristic,  and  with  her 
strong  sense  and  practical  ideas,  she  had  ample  armor  of 
protection  against  mistakes,  and  she  lived  eight  years  in 
the  White  House  as  serenely  as  she  would  have  done  in 
Galena.  It  is  to  her  credit  that  her  sons,  grown  to  man- 
hood, pay  her  marked  attentions,  and  that  she  is  to  them 
the  ideal  mother.  To  be  approved  by  one's  friends  is 
comfort,  but  to  be  adored  by  one's  children  is  to  be 
crowned  with  the  most  imperishable  of  earthly  diadems. 
When  Mrs.  Grant  appeared  in  sight  of  the  people  of  San 
Francisco,  she  was  leaning  on  the  arm  of  one  of  her 
boys,  who  had  gone  out  to  meet  her,  and  it  was  a 
pleasing  sight  to  those  who  saw  the  tender  devotion  of 
the  son  to  his  long-absent  mother.  General  Grant  was 
in  the  hands  of  the  committees  who  were  to  show  him 
honor,  but  his  wife  was  accepting  homage  far  more  sat- 


AN    UNFINISHED    CAREER.  627 

isfylng.  Her  mother's  heart  was  far  more  touched  by 
the  welcome  she  received  than  any  other  that  could  be 
given  her.  It  is  this  womanly  quality  which  has  influ- 
enced her  to  be  a  less  conspicuous  figure  than  her  posi- 
tion lent  her  opportunity  for  being.  She  has  not  cared 
to  be  recognized  apart  from  her  husband,  but  to  be  iden- 
tified with  him,  and  while  this  trait  is  an  admirable  one, 
it  has  none  the  less  conspired  to  limit  rather  than  en- 
large the  acquaintance  of  the  public  with  her.  But  she 
is  a  woman  approved  by  her  sex,  and  her  record  is  one 
that  her  sister-women  will  always  admire.  She  has  en- 
joyed great  honors,  and  abused  none  of  her  gifts,  and 
her  name  will  ever  be  associated  in  terms  of  praise  with 
that  of  the  country's  second  military  President,  and  the 
most  successful  general  of  his  day.  Her  life  is  yet  in 
its  summer,  and  the  laurels  bestowed  upon  her  are 
bright  and  undimmed,  and  for  a  long  time  yet  she  will 
be  in  the  enjoyment  of  them.  Whatever  future  awaits 
her  she  will  meet  it  with  dignity  and  appreciative  consid- 
eration of  the  exceptionally  brilliant  position  she  has 
filled. 


XXVI. 

LUCY   WEBB    HAYES. 

Mrs.  Hayes  was  the  most  widely  known  and  univer- 
sally popular  President's  wife  the  country  has  known. 
She  was  an  element  in  the  administration  that  was 
gladly  recognized,  and  her  influence  was  most  potent 
and  admirable.  In  her  successful  career  as  the  first  lady 
of  the  land  were  outlined  the  future  possibilities  of  her 
sex  in  all  other  positions  and  conditions.  She  repre- 
sented the  new  woman  era,  and  was  the  first  of  the 
women  of  the  White  House  of  the  third  period.  The 
women  of  the  Revolutionary  period  of  American  history 
exhibited  strono-er  traits  of  character  than   those  who 

o 

succeeded  them.  There  was  necessity  for  higher  quali- 
ties— the  display  of  courage,  heroism  and  fortitude,  and 
they  were  discovered  in  every  emergency.  The  country 
was  young  and  the  people  were  experimenting  with 
liberty ;  there  were  common  dangers  to  be  shared,  and 
fewer  honors  than  have  fallen  to  those  who  came  into 
the  inheritance  secured  for  them.  With  the  end  of  the 
administration  of  John  Ouincy  Adams  a  new  generation 
of  men  and  women  claimed  public  notice,  and  the  wo- 
men who  came  to  hold  the  highest  place  of  honor  in  the 
land  were  the  representatives  of  this  second  era  of  the 
country's  history.     They  were  social  queens,  but  nothing 

more.     They  aspired  to  supremacy  In  the  drawing  room, 
(628) 


HOSTESS    OF    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  629 

and  were  content  to  acquire  it.  Some  were  too  little 
used  to  the  world  to  care  for  even  this,  and  led  retired 
domestic  lives,  wholly  apart  from  the  public  careers  of 
their  husbands, 

Mrs.  Hayes  is  the  product  of  the  last  half  of  the  nine- 
teenth century,  and  in  her  strong,  healthful  influence 
gives  the  world  assurance  of  what  the  next  century  wo- 
men will  be.  Her  life,  for  many  years,  was  spent  before 
the  public,  and  she  so  fully  identified  herself  with  her 
husband's  administration  that  it  can  never  be  remem- 
bered apart  from  her.  She  gave  her  every  thought  to 
the  maintenance  and  advancement  of  her  husband's  fame 
and  name  as  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  the  United  States; 
she  deemed  no  act,  however  insignificant  of  itself,  too 
slight  to  be  considered  unimportant  if,  in  its  results,  it 
could  add  to  his  renown.  In  no  one  particular  did  she 
so  ably  display  her  strength  of  character  as  in  com- 
manding, by  her  strict  adherence  to  her  domestic  duties, 
the  recognition  due  her  for  her  able  performance  of  the 
responsibility  devolving  upon  her  as  the  counsellor  and 
friend  of  the  President.  Mrs.  Hayes  went  to  the  White 
House  prepared  through  her  happy  married  life,  through 
her  winsome,  cheerful  spirit;  through  her  long  expe- 
rience in  official  circles;  through  her  intelligence  and 
culture,  and  her  social  rank  and  attributes,  to  fill  the 
highest  place  a  woman  can  occupy  in  a  Republic, 
Through  her  husband  the  dignified  place  she  filled  was 
hers,  and  in  the  daily  performance  of  the  pleasant  duties 
of  hostess  of  the  Executive  Mansion  she  thoucfht  of  his 


630  LUCY    WEBB    KAYES. 

honor  first.  In  the  results  attained  by  her  was  again 
exemplified  the  truth  of  the  old  adage  that  we  cannot 
rightly  help  others  without  helping  ourselves.  She,  in 
lending  additional  strength  to  her  husband's  administra- 
tion, commanded  increased  respect  for  her  sex.  She 
gave  the  world  a  fair  example  of  the  power  for  good 
which  a  woman  of  fine  breeding  and  social  opportunities 
can  exercise.  Mrs.  Hayes  called  forth,  through  her  suc- 
cessful efforts  in  placing  herself  beside  her  husband  in 
his  official  rank,  a  more  just  appreciation  of  her  woman- 
hood and  a  hisjher  reverence  for  the  relations  of  wife- 
hood  and  motherhood.  This  service,  though  it  has  not 
been  generally  recognized  as  such,  is  perhaps  the  great- 
est she  could  have  done  the  world.  The  assertion  will 
be  endorsed  when  the  fact,  which  cannot  be  contro- 
verted, is  recognized,  that  great  men  in  this  country 
have  not  always  been  fortunate  in  being  wedded  to 
representative  women.  From  the  time  of  Franklin 
down  to  the  era  of  Henry  Clay,  and  even  more  recently, 
the  wives  of  many  of  the  leading  public  men  of  the 
country  have  not  been  remarkable.  It  wall  require  but 
little  effort  to  recall  the  many  representatives  of  the 
common-place  in  women  who  have  filled — or  rather 
failed  to  fill — the  places  made  theirs  by  reason  of  their 
husbands'  positions.  The  harmony  of  domestic  life  has 
been  lost  to  public  men,  no  less  than  to  those  not  known 
to  the  public,  by  their  refusal  or  their  inability  to  recog- 
nize the  individuality  of  their  wives  and  the  duty  these 
same  wives  owed  to  society  and  the  world  at  large. 


HONORED    IN    HER    POSITION.  63 1 

Ignorance  and  prejudice,  combined  with  jealousy,  have 
cost  men  in  their  domestic  relations  more  misery  than 
the  world  readily  perceives,  but  it  is  gradually  coming 
to'appreciate  the  fact  through  the  tares  that  have  come 
up  in  the  places  w'here  a  harvest  was  anticipated.  People 
do  not  gather  grapes  from  thistles  nor  figs  from  thorns 
with  any  greater  success  than  in  olden  times.  And 
from  the  days  of  Socrates  down  to  that  of  President 
Hayes  homes  have  been  bright  and  happy,  or  otherwise, 
according  to  the  respect  in  which  the  women  at  the  head 
of  them  were  held.  Many  of  our  great  men  have  left 
an  unpleasant  record  of  their  domestic  lives,  and  the 
retribution  has  come  in  the  misconduct  of  children, 
sometimes  to  the  third  and  fourth  oreneration.  Mrs. 
Hayes,  in  her  honored  place,  helped  men  and  women  to 
realize  the  glory  of  life  when  love  is  its  impelling  power; 
and  in  the  hearts  of  women  this  feeline  was  much 
strengthened  by  observing  the  universal  and  spon- 
taneous reverence  exhibited  toward  a  woman  wdio  was 
strong  in  herself  and  in  the  public  position  she  sus- 
tained. 

Mrs.  Hayes  was  born  in  Chillicothe,  when  it  was  the 
capital  of  Ohio,  and  was  the  daughter  of  Dr.  James 
Webb,  and  the  granddaughter  of  Dr.  Isaac  Cook.  The 
Webbs  were  natives  of  Granville  county.  North  Caro- 
lina. In  the  last  century  three  worthy  brothers  belong- 
ing to  this  family  went  out  from  home  to  carve  their 
own  way.  One  of  them  became  a  leading  merchant  of 
Richmond,  Virginia;  a  second  one  lived  near  his   old 


632  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

home,  wedded  to  farm  life ;  and  the  third  removed  to 
Ohio  and  became  a  prominent  physician.  This  latter 
brother  was  the  father  of  Lucy  Webb.  He  died  in  1833, 
of  cholera,  in  Lexington,  Kentucky,  where  he  had  gone 
to  complete  arrangements  for  sending  slaves  to  Liberia 
who  had  been  set  free  by  himself  and  his  father.  The 
maternal  grandfather  of  Miss  Webb  was  one  of  the  first 
settlers  of  Chillicothe,  and  belonged  to  the  best  Puritan 
stock  of  New  England.  Ller  mother,  Mrs.  Webb,  was 
a  lady  of  unusual  strength  of  character  and  of  deep  re- 
ligious convictions.  After  the  death  of  her  husband  she 
removed  to  Delaware,  in  order  to  be  near  the  Wesleyan 
University,  where  her  sons  were  educated.  Her  fortune 
was  ample,  and  she  was  enabled  to  give  her  children 
every  advantage.  In  order  to  be  near  them  she  fitted 
up  a  cottage  on  the  college  grounds,  and  her  house  was 
thenceforth  a  happy  gathering-place  for  the  classmates 
of  the  brothers  at  holiday  times.  She  studied  with  her 
brothers  and  recited  to  the  college  instructors,  and  had 
the  advantages  of  a  training  which  prepared  her  for  the 
Wesleyan  Female  College  at  Cincinnati,  which  she  en- 
tered at  the  same  time  that  her  brothers  commenced  their 
studies  in  the  medical  college.  She  was  peculiarly  fortu- 
nate in  having  as  her  early  teachers  the  professors  of  the 
university  at  Delaware,  and  it  is  no  small  credit  to  the 
denomination  to  which  she  belonged  to  have  it  said  that 
it  gave  to  both  sexes  the  best  school  advantages  to  be 
procured  in  the  West  in  that  day  or  at  the  present  time. 
The  training  of  girls  was  not  considered  as  impor- 


GRADUATE    OF    WESLEYAN    COLLEGE.  633 

tant  twenty-five  years  ago  as  it  is  now,  and  when  the 
opportunities  enjoyed  by  Miss  Webb  are  considered, 
together  with  the  fact  that  she  was  a  graduate  of  the 
first  chartered  college  for  young  women  in  the  United 
States,  it  will  be  realized  from  whence  came  her  executive 
ability  and  well-balanced  character.  She  was,  while  at  the 
college  in  Cincinnati,  under  the  instruction  and  in  the 
family  of  Rev.  Mr.  and  Mrs,  P.  B.  Wilbur,  and  her  stay 
with  them  was  a  season  of  enjoyment  and  study.  It  was 
during  her  life  in  this  school  that  her  affections  were  en- 
gaged by  Mr.  Hayes,  then  a  promising  young  lawyer  of 
Cincinnati  and  a  native  of  Delaware.  She  was  at  the 
Delaware  Sulphur  Springs  enjoying  a  vacation  when 
she  formed  his  acquaintance,  and  he  thenceforth  became 
a  frequent  visitor  at  the  P^riday  evening  receptions  held 
at  the  college  parlors.  The  impression  the  vivacious 
under-graduate  made  upon  him  during  this  summer 
vacation  is  expressed  in  a  letter  he  wrote  to  a  friend  in 
Delaware  after  his  return  to  the  city.  He  says:  "My 
friend  Jones  has  introduced  me  to  many  of  our  city 
belles,  but  I  do  not  see  any  one  who  makes  me  forget 
the  natural  gayety  and  attractiveness  of  Miss  Lucy." 

Her  schoolmates  have  many  pleasant  memories  of 
her.  One  of  them,  writing  of  her  in  iSSo,  while  she  was 
yet  in  the  White  House,  referred  to  her  great  likeness 
to  her  mother  in  mental  and  moral  qualities  in  this  wise, 
and  thus  speaks  of  one  of  her  traits  of  character.  She 
says  :  "  There  is  one  trait  in  the  character  of  Mrs.  Hayes 
which  I  should  like  to  emphasize.     She  absolutely  will 


634  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

not  talk  gossip.  Even  in  the  intimate  confidences  of 
daily  intercourse  she  is  as  guarded  as  in  the  presence 
of  a  multitude.  The  Executive  Mansion  has  for  its 
mistress  one  who  is  a  living  exem.plification  of  Christ's 
Golden  Rule.  Except  in  very  rare  instances,  when  some 
act  of  oppression  to  the  poor  or  the  defenceless  outrages 
her  sense  of  right,  she  is  always  thoroughly  kind  in  ex- 
pression, I  think  this  trait  of  carefulness  for  the  feelings 
of  others  a  eift  from  her  mother,  who  had  a  nature  ex- 
ceedingly  genial  and  kind.  It  is  indeed  a  blessed  thing 
for  our  country  that  such  a  woman  had  the  training  of 
our  President's  wife." 

While  yet  at  school  Miss  Webb  became  a  member  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  and  was  even  in  those 
early  years  ardently  attached  to  the  duties  and  require- 
ments of  a  Christian  life,  and  in  this,  as  in  other  respects, 
followed  closely  in  the  footsteps  of  her  mother.  She 
was  a  clever  student,  as  one  of  her  companions  in  school 
admits  in  a  letter  in  which  she  says :  "  Lucy  Webb  was 
a  first-class  student  in  botany  and  other  studies,  and  I 
have  reason  to  recall  my  feeling  of  mingled  annoyance 
and  admiration  as  our  teacher,  Miss  De  Forrest,  would 
turn  from  us  older  girls  to  Miss  Webb,  who  sat  at  the 
head  of  the  class,  and  get  from  her  a  clear  analysis  of 
the  flower  under  discussion,  or  the  correct  transposition 
of  some  involved  line  of  poetry.  Somewhat  of  this 
accuracy  was  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  she  had 
been  trained  in  the  severe  drill  of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan 
University.  She  remained  in  the  Ladies'  College  of 
Cincinnati  until  she  completed  its  course  of  study." 


MARRIAGE    BELLS.  635 

In  1852,  two  years  subsequent  to  her  meeting  with 
Mr.  Hayes,  the  young  lady,  whom  he  had  courted  most 
assiduously  while  she  was  yet  engaged  with  her  studies, 
became  his  bride.  The  marriage  ceremony  was  per- 
formed by  Professor  L.  D.  McCabe,  of  the  Wesleyan 
University,  December  20,  1852,  and  the  only  attendant 
of  the  young  pair  was  a  pretty  child  of  eight  years,  the 
daughter  of  the  bridegroom's  only  sister.  It  was  a  sim- 
ple, unpretentious  wedding,  attended  by  loving  friends, 
and  crowned  by  the  most  absolute  affection.  It  has 
proven  a  marriage  of  absolute  happiness,  and  the  suc- 
cessful career  of  Mr.  Hayes  is  in  a  large  measure  due 
to  the  devotion  of  his  wife,  and  the  intelligent  appre- 
ciation of  his  aspirations  which  she  had,  and  which  she 
inspired  and  encouraged.  This  sentiment  of  loyalty  for 
and  faith  in  her  husband  is  one  of  her  admirable  traits, 
and  it  has  been  one  which  has  greatly  endeared  her  lo 
others;  "all  the  world  loves  a  lover,"  runs  the  old  say- 
ing, and  if  the  feeling  entertained  for  Mrs.  Hayes  by  the 
public  were  analyzed  it  would  be  found  to  be  due  to  her 
womanly  and  wifely  qualities  and  to  the  healthful  atmo- 
sphere of  her  home-life.  Several  incidents  which  aptly 
portray  the  sensitive  appreciation  she  has  of  what  is 
due  the  fame  of  her  husband  from  her  are  related,  the 
following  being  a  prototype  of  many  told.  Soon  after 
Mrs.  Hayes  reached  the  White  House  she  was  visited 
by  the  wife  of  a  minister  of  Washington,  and  asked  to 
forbid  the  use  of  wine  in  the  mansion  during  her  stay 
there.     Mrs.  Hayes  heard  the  request  with  polite  sur- 


636  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

prise,  and  replied  in  these  words:  "Madame,  it  is  my 
husband,  not  myself,  who  is  President,  I  think  that  a  man 
who  is  capable  of  filling  so  important  a  position,  as  I 
believe  my  husband  to  be,  is  quite  competent  to  estab- 
lish such  rules  as  will  obtain  in  his  house  without  calling 
on  members  of  other  households.  I  would  not  offend 
you,  and  I  would  not  offend  Mr.  Hayes,  who  knows 
what  is  due  to  his  position,  his  family  and  himself,  with- 
out any  interference  of  others,  directly  or  through  his 
wife."  This  reply,  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  Mrs. 
Hayes  was  a  strong  temperance  woman,  a  Methodist;, 
and  very  likely  as  entirely  decided  in  her  mind  then  as 
later  regarding  the  subject,  is  a  pleasing  evidence  of 
the  earnest  self-respect  of  the  President's  wife.  As  to 
the  stand  she  did  take,  the  following  letter,  written  by 
Rev.  Dr.  Read,  fully  explains.  The  subject  created  cor" 
siderable  discussion  at  the  time  and  afterwards  : 

"  Mrs.  Hayes  has  decided  that  hereafter,  while  shs 
occupies  the  White  House,  there  shall  be  no  wine  upon 
the  table,  even  upon  state  occasions,  when  American 
citizens  dine  with  the  President.  Noble  stand  for  a 
noble  Christian  woman  !  God  be  praised  for  such  a 
grand,  heroic  woman  to  occupy  the  highest  social  posi- 
tion in  the  nation  at  this  time !  It  is  an  answer  to 
prayer.  She  comes  from  Ohio,  where  the  woman's  cru- 
sade aofainst  InteniDerance  be^an,  and  where  she  cauo-ht 
from  her  Christian  sisters  something  of  that  noble, 
heroic  spirit  that  dares  to  do  right  in  the  face  of  the 
world.     Henceforth  the   name  of  Mrs.  Hayes  shall  be 


HER    husband's   RECORD.  637 

enrolled  with  the  noblest  women  of  the  race,  and  with 
the  Marys  who  stood  by  the  cross  of  Jesus,  even  when 
all  the  men,  except  the  womanly  John,  had  deserted 
him." 

President  Hayes,  whose  public  life  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century  has  been  a  series  of  successes,  was  the  youngest 
child  of  Rutherford  Hayes,  who  died  before  his  son's 
birth.  The  mother  upon  whom  the  sole  care  of  the 
family  devolved,  and  the  only  parent  her  boy  ever  knew, 
was  a  character  of  rare  sweetness  and  streno-th.  She 
was  left  in  straitened  circumstances,  but  was  a  self-re- 
liant woman  and  a  good  manager,  and  she  was  able  to 
give  her  children  excellent  educational  advantages.  Mr. 
Hayes  was  a  graduate  of  Kenyon  College,  Ohio,  and  of 
the  Cambridge  Law  School.  In  1845  ^^  "^'^s  admitted 
to  practice  before  the  Supreme  Court  of  Ohio,  and 
began  his  legal  life  in  Fremont,  his  present  home.  He 
removed  to  Cincinnati  in  1850,  and  resided  there  for 
many  years.  Mr,  Hayes  was  twice  elected  city  attorney 
of  Cincinnati,  and  at  the  outbreak  of  the  civil  war 
entered  the  army  as  Major  of  the  23d  Ohio  Volunteers, 
of  which  General  Rosecrans  was  Colonel  and  Hon. 
Stanley  Matthews  Lieutenant-Colonel.  During  the  war 
he  was  four  times  wounded,  and  served  with  distinction 
until  the  close,  though  he  was  elected  to  Congress  before 
peace  was  declared. 

Mrs.  Hayes  spent  two  summers  and  a  winter  taking 
care  of  her  husband's  soldiers,  and  they  loved  her  for 
her  motherly  ministrations  to  them  in  their  hours  of 
sickness  and  mental  dejection. 


638  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

A  member  of  the  Twenty-Third  Ohio,  who  went  out 
with  the  reofiment  at  the  beg-inninor  of  the  war,  tells  the 
followinof  anecdote,  which  occurred  durinor  the  first  visit 
of  Mrs.  Hayes  to  her  husband's  camp.  It  is  a  simple 
story,  which  illustrates  the  character  of  the  President's 
wife  completely. 

"  It  was  the  first  of  our  being  out,  when  we  had  as  yet 
known  but  little  of  the  hardships  of  war.  One  da)' 
Mrs.  Hayes  arrived  in  camp,  but  the  fact  was  not  gener- 
ally known.  James  Saunders  was  a  member  of  my 
company.  Jim,  as  he  was  called,  was  a  tall,  lean,  unsus- 
pecting, awkward  country-boy — a  good  soldier,  but  not 
overly  smart  in  detecting  a  joke.  Consequently  the 
boys  used  frequently  to  sell  him  quite  badly ;  but  he  took 
it  all  in  good  part,  and  was  entirely  ready  the  next  time 
a  sell  came  along  to  '  bite'  at  it. 

"For  some  time  there  had  been  sad  need  of  some 
means  of  mendino-  our  clothes.     This  need  was  beino- 

o  o 

discussed  the  next  day  after  Mrs.  Hayes'  arrival,  and 

Jim  was  especially  strong  in  his  expressions  of  need  for 

some  one  to  mend  his  blouse,  which  really  was  in  a  very 

unpresentable  condition. 

"  *  Why,  Jim,'  said  one  of  the  boys,  '  didn't  you  know 

that  there  is  a  woman  in  camp  whose  business  it  is  to 

mend  the  boys'  clothes  ? ' 

"  =  No,'  said  Jim,  in  astonishment.     '  Where  is  she  ?  ' 
"'Up  at  the  Colonel's  tent,'  said  the  other.     'I  was 

tliere  and  had  her  fix  my  coat  yesterday,  and  she  did  a 

smackin'  good  job,  too.' 


JIM    AND    HIS    BLOUSE.  639 

"'Golly!'  said  Jim.  'I'll  go  up,  then,  this  very  after- 
noon, and  git  my  blouse  doctored.  That  is  very  handy, 
,    indeed.' 

"  True  to  his  word  Jim  called  around  at  the  Colonel's 
tent,  and,  with  his  hat  under  his  arm,  presented  himself, 
with  his  awkwardest  bow,  at  the  entrance.  He  was  re- 
ceived with  marked  politeness  by  the  Colonel,  and  the 
boys  who  were  lurking  about  appreciating  the  joke 
awaited  developments.  In  a  few  moments  Jim  again 
appeared  outside  in  his  shirt  sleeves,  and  the  radiant 
smile  that  lit  up  his  honest  features  showed  that  he  had 
not  been  rebuffed,  at  least.  Calling  him  aside,  where  a 
group  of  the  boys  were  gathered,  the  following  conver- 
sation took  place: 

"  '  Well,  Jim,  did  you  find  your  woman  ?  ' 

"'Of  course  I  did.  She  was  just  a  settin'  there,  and 
she's  a  mighty  good-looking  woman,  too.' 

"  '  What  did  you  say  ?  '  all  chuckling. 

"  'Why,  when  I  went  in  I  told  the  Colonel  that  I  heerd 
there  was  a  woman  there  to  do  sewing  for  the  boys,  and 
as  my  blouse  needed  mendin'  and  buttons  sewed  on,  I 
had  come  to  git  it  done.  He  kind  of  smiled,  and 
turned  to  the  woman  settin'  there  and  asked  her  if  she 
could  fix  the  blouse  for  me,  and  she  said  she  could  as 
well  as  not,  as  she  had  nothing  special  on  hand.  So  1 
took  it  off  and  left  it,  the  Colonel  tellin'  me  to  call  'round 
this  afternoon  and  git  it.  You  all  seem  to  laugh,  but  I 
don't  see  anything  funny.  If  she  is  here  to  do  the  sew- 
ing, why  not  do  mine  ? ' 


640  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

"This  was  too  much.  The  boys  all  broke  out  into  a 
loud  chorus  of  laughter,  and  as  soon  as  it  subsided,  one 
of  them  said : 

"  'Jim,  don't  you  know  that  that  woman  is  the  Colonel's 
wife  ? ' 

" '  I  don't  care ;  she's  a  lady  anyhow,'  as  though  that 
didn't  follow,  '  and  I  am  goin'  to  git  my  blouse,  just  as 
she  told  me  to.' 

"And  he  did  q-q,  and  was  ao-ain  received  in  that  man- 
ner  which  made  him  forget  himself  and  his  awkward- 
ness, and  she  restored  his  blouse  to  him  in  perfect 
repair. 

"  This  little  incident  was  all  that  was  needed  to  fix  the 
affections  of  all  the  boys  upon  the  Colonel's  wife,  and 
whenever  she  appeared  again  in  camp,  she  was  certain 
to  receive  the  warmest  welcome. 

"  Poor  Jim  died  in  a  Southern  hospital,  and  his  name 
may  now  be  seen  upon  the  monument  standing  in  the 
village  square  at  Mesopotamia,  Trumbull  county,  Ohio, 
and  we  have  often  wondered  if  the  President  and  his 
wife  ever  think  of  mending  his  blouse,  rather  than  be 
parties  to  a  sell  upon  an  innocent  soldier  boy." 

At  the  battle  of  South  Mountain  Colonel  Hayes  was  se- 
verely wounded,  and  his  wife  learning  of  his  condition  has- 
tened to  Washington,  where  she  expected  to  find  him  in 
some  one  of  the  hospitals.  Failing  to  get  tidings  of  him  she 
went  on  to  Frederick,  accompanied  by  a  relative,  Mr.  Piatt. 
At  last  in  the  village  of  Middletown,  Maryland,  she 
found  him,  cared  for  by  her  brothers,  one  of  whom  was 


IN    THE    HOSPITALS.  64 1 

suro^eon  of  the  regiment.  She  was  a  welcome  addition 
to  the  Colonel's  corps  of  nurses,  and  as  soon  as  she 
was  established  beside  him  his  improvement  began. 
The  family  in  whose  house  the  wounded  Colonel  lay, 
Captain  Rudy's,  said  of  her  long  afterwards :  "  The 
moment  she  crossed  our  threshold  we  knew  she  was  a 
;j;^ood  woman  and  natural  lady.  She  made  herself 'easily 
at  home,  and  next  morning  after  she  came  she  was 
down  in  the  kitchen  early  and  asked  leave  to  cook  the 
Colonel's  favorite  dish." 

As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  walk  about  the  house  she 
spent  a  portion  of  every  day  in  the  hospitals,  visiting- 
Union  and  Confederate  wounded  alike,  and  carrying, 
them  grapes  and  other  delicacies.  She  read  to  those 
who  were  well  enough  to  be  interested,  and  made  her- 
self a  welcome  presence  to  the  sick  and  the  dying.  Her 
mild  manners  and  unaffected  kindly  ways  won  her 
friends  everywhere,  and  when  she  left  the  place  to  re- 
turn to  Cincinnati  with  her  husband,  her  departure  was 
sincerely  regretted.  They  had  been  well  cared  for  by 
the  family  with  whom  they  had  stayed,  and  when  Colonel 
Hayes  became  Governor  of  Ohio,  Mrs.  Hayes  sent  for 
one  of  the  young  ladies  of  the  household,  and  enter- 
tained her  most  hospitably.  Long  afterward,  when 
Governor  Hayes  had  become  President,  he  heard  of  the 
death  of  Captain  Rudy,  and  wrote  a  letter  of  sympathy, 
ill  which  he  reverted  kindly  to  the  time  when  he  was 
disabled  and   found  a  home  with   them.     Leaving  the 

held   as   a    Brigadier-General   to    take    his    seat   in   the 
41 


642  LUCY    WERB    HAYES. 

Thirty-ninth  Congress,  Cincinnati  people  saw  little  of 
Mr.  Hayes  for  several  years,  for  he  was  re-elected  to 
Congress,  and  resided,  until  nominated  for  Governor,  at 
the  capital. 

The  Executive  Mansion  at  Columbus  was  conducted 
on  the  most  generous  scale  socially,  and  the  Governor 
and  his  wife  entertained  continuously.  Both  are  pre- 
eminently social  in  their  natures,  and  in  all  the  public 
positions  he  filled,  she  extended  elegant  hospitality. 
Their  circle  of  private  friends  is  very  extensive,  and 
Mrs.  Hayes  has  ever  delighted  to  be  a  hostess,  so  that 
their  home,  wherever  it  was,  has  been  rarely  without 
guests, 

Mrs.  Hayes  worked  to  enlarge  the  charities  of  the 
State,  and  was  identified  with  all  good  causes  during 
her  life  in  Columbus,  and  constantly  interested  herself 
in  church  work.  She  enjoyed  an  experience  and  exerted 
an  influence  that  ably  fitted  her  for  the  position  of  lady 
of  the  White  House.  Her  domestic  responsibilities 
were  not  light,  for  she  has  been  the  mother  of  eight 
children,  five  of  whom  are  living,  and  her  duty  has  been 
performed  as  well  in  that  as  in  every  otlier  relationship 
in  life.  It  has  been  the  custom  for  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hayes 
to  spend  as  much  of  the  time  in  the  summer  in  their  own 
home  at  Fremont  as  possible,  and  up  to  the  time  of  their 
removal  to  the  White  House  "  Spiegel  Grove  "  was  the 
resort  of  many  friends  during  the  warm  season.  It  be- 
came their  place  of  residence  after  their  removal  from 
Washington.      This    home   is    beautifully    situated    on 


HER    OHIO    HOME.  643 

Burchard  Avenue,  so  named  in  honor  of  Sardis  Burch- 
ard,  the  uncle  and  guardian  of  Mr.  Hayes.  The  house 
was  erected  by  Mr.  Burchard  in  i860,  and  it  stands  in 
the  centre  of  thirty  acres  of  woodland.  Immediatel}' 
surroundinof  the  house  are  handsome  lawns  and  Qardens, 
with  some  fine  old  oaks  left  standing  in  their  midst,  and 
which  contrast  most  charmingly  with  the  otherwise  open 
grounds.  The  house  is  of  brick,  two  stories  high,  and 
nearly  surrounded  by  a  wide  verandah.  It  is  a  large  and 
comfortable  mansion,  furnished  like  any  country  residence 
of  a  person  of  means.  There  is  a  library-room  on  the 
second  floor  well  stocked  with  books  and  adorned  with 
pictures,  and  in  the  handsome  parlors  are  paintings  by 
American,  French  and  German  artists.  The  surround- 
ings of  the  place  are  remarkably  tasteful  and  attractive. 
Burchard  Park,  which  was  a  gift  to  the  town  of  Fremont 
from  Mr.  Burchard,  lies  near  the  mansion,  and  there  are 
handsome  residences  in  the  neighboring  avenues,  which 
enhance  the  beauty  of  Spiegel  Grove. 

Mrs.  Hayes'  personal  appearance  has  been  so  often 
reproduced  through  photographs  and  pen-pictures  that 
it  is  almost  superfluous  to  give  any  lengthy  description, 
particularly  as  the  engraving  accompanying  this  sketch 
is  an  accurate  likeness  of  her  face.  She  is  of  medium 
height,  is  squarely  built,  and  has  large  features.  Her 
hair  is  a  particularly  noticeable  feature,  partly  from  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  worn,  and  mainly  for  Its  abundance 
and  beauty  of  color  and  texture.  Her  brow  Is  low  and 
broad,  and  is  unmarked  by  care.     The  mouth  is  large 


644  LUCY    WliBIJ    HAYES„ 

and  adorned  with  beautiful  teetli.  Her  eyes  are  large 
and  expressive,  and  deepen  in  color  from  gray  to  black 
as  the  feelings  are  wrought  upon.  All  her  features  are 
expressive,  and  her  face  is  a  most  pleasing  and  ani- 
mated one.  She  has  a  gay  and  sunny  temperament, 
hence  her  face  is  the  mirror  of  much  that  is  bright 
and  beautiful.  She  owes  much  of  her  good  looks  and 
her  happiness  to  her  wonderful  health,  for  she  is  as 
splendid  a  specimen  of  physical  womanhood  as  the 
country  can  boast,  and  her  presence  is  a  tonic  to  weaker 
women. 

The  Presidential  canvass  in  1876  was  an  exciting  one, 
and  its  disputed  results,  its  electoral  commission,  and 
final  settlement  tested  the  equanimity  of  all  parties,  and 
created  greater  anxiety  than  any  event  which  succeeded 
the  war.  President  and  Mrs.  Hayes  reached  Washing- 
ton the  day  before  the  inauguration,  and  became  the 
guests  of  Senator  Sherman.  An  immense  throng  filled 
the  Capitol  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  March  to  wit- 
ness the  inaugural  and  to  see  the  new  President.  He 
rode  with  ex-President  Grant  through  the  city,  and 
alighted  at  the  eastern  portico,  welcomed  by  hundreds 
of  people  of  all  classes.  Passing  into  the  Senate  cham- 
ber, he  was  seated  in  front  of  the  Speaker's  desk,  beside 
the  retiring  Chief  Executive.  In  the  gallery  sat  his  wife, 
watching  him  with  an  eagerness  that  betrayed  her  hap- 
piness, and  an  anxiety  that  discovered  her  intense  inter- 
est in  the  occasion.  He  looked  as  impassive  as  the 
taciturn  soldier  beside  him,  until  glancing  his  eyes  over 


TESTIMONIAL  PRESENTED  BY  HER  OLD  SCHOOLMATES.  645 

the  Senate  gallery  he  caught  sight  of  his  wife.  There 
was  a  mutual  glance  of  recognition,  an  assuring  smile, 
and  the  inaugural  address  was  given  in  clear,  earnest 
tones.  Immediately  following  the  ceremonies  the  newly- 
made  President  and  Mrs.  Hayes  lunched  at  the  White 
House  with  ex-President  and  Mrs.  Grant.  In  the  after- 
noon a  carriage  drove  up  to  the  steps,  and  soon  General 
Grant  and  wife  appeared,  followed  by  President  and  Mrs. 
Hayes  without  hat  or  head-covering.  They  bade  each 
other  good-bye,  and  as  the  carriage  moved  away,  Presi- 
dent Hayes  remarked  to  General  Grant:  "General,  if  I 
had  a  slipper,  I'd  throw  it  after  you."  The  President 
and  Mrs.  Hayes  stood  a  (ew  moments  looking  after 
it,  and  she,  stopping  to  kiss  one  or  two  children  near 
her,  passed  with  her  husband  into  the  house,  and  the 
new  life  was  begun.  The  children  of  the  President,  who 
with  relatives  had  been  at  the  Ebbitt  House,  during  their 
parents'  stay  with  Senator  and  Mrs.  Sherman,  joined 
them  later  in  the  day,  and  the  first  day  in  the  White 
House  closed  in  excitement  and  happiness.  Mrs.  Hayes 
was  delighted  with  the  high  place  to  which  she  had 
attained.  She  made  no  denial  on  this  point,  and  freely 
admitted  the  satisfaction  it  gave  her,  and  the  enjoyment 
she  hoped  to  have.  One  of  the  pleasantest  of  the  many 
pleasant  incidents  connected  with  her  advent  into  the 
White  House  was  the  class  testimonial  presented  to  her 
by  several  of  her  old  schoolmates  at  the  Female  Wes- 
leyan  College,  who  were  in  Washington  at  the  time  of 
the  inauguration.     They  arranged  to  send  her  a  floral 


646  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

offering,  and  fixed  upon  the  happy  device  of  the  college 
badge.  It  is  composed  of  a  heart  in  an  open  Bible,  the 
motto  of  the  thirty-first  chapter  of  Proverbs,  marked 
with  an  anchor.  The  floral  tribute  was  formed  of  a 
heart  centre  of  white  rosebuds,  with  an  outside  border 
of  line  white  flowers,  the  intervening  space  being  filled 
with  blue  forget-me-nots.  Upon  this  was  placed  an 
open  Bible — a  real  Bible — held  open  by  an  anchor 
formed  of  white  roses,  like  the  heart,  and  a  single  rose- 
bud marked  the  following  passage: 

"  Her  husband  is  known  of  the  elders  and  praises  her 
in  the  gates." 

Accompanying  the  beautiful  gift  was  a  note  written 
by  Miss  Rariden,  and  signed  by  the  several  ladies.  It 
was  couched  in  these  pleasing  words : 

"Washington,  March  <^th,  iStj. 

"  Dear  Sister  : — It  will  need  but  the  sight  of  our 
offering — the  old  school  badge — to  remind  you  of  the 
lang  syne  when  school  lessons  were  our  greatest  duties, 
and  school  triumphs  our  highest  rewards.  Since  then 
you  have  added  to  the  title  of  good  scholar  the  higher 
ones  of  good  wife  and  tender  mother,  and  now  the  voice 
of  the  people  has  called  you  to  come  higher. 

"  We,  the  representatives  of  the  Alma  Mater,  beg  the 
acceptance  of  our  flowers  as  a  tribute  to  the  first  of  our 
number  called  to  preside  at  the  White  House,  though 
the  offering  is  less  due  to  you  as  our  President's  wife 
than  to  the  true  woman  you  have  proved  yourself  in 
every  relation  of  life. 


A   COURTEOUS    HOSTESS.  647 

"We  hope  you  will  have  the  kindness  to  appoint  an 
early  day,  when  we  can  express  in  person  our  congratu- 
lations. 

"Mary  Brown  Hitt, 

"  Mary  C.  Rariden, 

"  Mrs.  J.  Eddy  Somers, 

"Miss  Easton, 

"  Mrs.  Eliza  Letford  Nordhoff." 

Of  the  number,  Mrs.  Hitt  and  Miss  Rariden  were 
the  only  classmates  ;  the  others  were  alumni.  The  best 
plans  will  go  aglee,  and  in  the  conveyance  of  this  lovely 
gift  the  note  was  abstracted  or  lost,  and  Mrs.  Hayes  was 
in  a  quiver  of  excitement  over  the  anonymous  offering. 
That  evening  upon  receipt  of  another  Bible  (she  had 
enough  Bibles  given  her  to  stock  a  hotel),  she  spoke 
of  the  more  precious  one  accompanying  the  college 
badge,  and  crossing  the  room  pointed  out  its  b-eauties. 
The  husband  of  one  of  the  donors  happened  to  be 
present,  and  communicated  their  names.  The  end  was 
felicitous.  Mrs.  Hayes  appointed  the  next  morning  to 
receive  the.  ladies.  She  met  them  with  charming  friend- 
liness, conducted  them  through  the  green-house,  sent 
for  her  husband  and  children,  and  in  the  words  of  one 
of  her  guests,  "was  all  that  a  courteous  hostess  could 
be." 

Four  weeks  after  taking  up  her  residence  in  the 
Executive  Mansion,  she  held  her  first  Saturday  after- 
noon  reception,  and  on   this  occasion  she  was  as  well 


648  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

satisfied  a  lady  as  had  ever  stood  in  her  place.  A  friend 
who  observed  her  on  that  day  said  that  "  her  eyes 
looked  as  black  as  night,  and  they  had  a  lustre  rarely 
seen.  She  made  no  effort  to  conceal  her  delight.  Her 
whole  face  was  positively  radiant.  The  effect  as  she 
received,  assisted  by  her  friends,  was  precisely  that  of 
all  the  light  thrown  upon  one  figure  of  a  tableau."  The 
toilette  worn  by  Mrs.  Hayes  on  this  occasion  was  a 
black  gros  grain  princesse  dress,  square  at  the  neck, 
and  perfectly  fitting,  and  relieved  of  its  plainness  by 
exquisite  point-laces.  The  next  public  occasion  on 
which  she  appeared  was  at  the  dinner  given  to  the  Rus- 
sian Grand  Dukes  Alexis  and  Constantine.  The  gather- 
ing was  as  brilliant  as  any  ever  assembled  in  the  Execu- 
tive Mansion.  The  drawing-rooms  were  elaborately 
decorated  with  flowers,  and  the  State  dining-room  never 
presented  a  finer  appearance.  .  The  table  was  a  mass  of 
flowers  and  cut-elass  and  Sevres  china.  In  the  centre 
was  an  oval  mirror  representing  a  lake  with  tropical 
banks  of  ferns  and  trailing  vines.  In  the  centre  of  the 
lake  was  an  island  of  pink  azalias  studded  with  cloth  of 
gold  roses,  while  over  the  outer  surface  were  vines 
massed  to  look  like  water-lilies.  The  banks  of  the  lake 
were  strewn  with  graceful  hills  formed  with  vases  of 
tropical  fruit,  and  here  and  there  a  pyramid  or  column 
of  candied  fruits  and  bon-bons  rose  between.  At  each 
end  of  the  lake  were  tall  frosted  cakes  decorated  with 
white  azalias  and  pink  and  tea  roses  and  smilax.  Deli- 
cate pink  and  white  vases  of  frosted  glass  and   silver 


A    BRILLIANT   ENTERTAINMENT.  649 

Stands  stood  at  each  plate,  the  pink  vases  holding  clus- 
ters of  white  buds,  and  the  white  vases  pink  buds. 
Azalia  trees,  camelias  and  other  flowering  plants  were 
arranged  about  the  room,  ornamenting  by  their  prox- 
imity to  them  the  chocolate  and  strawberry  pyramids 
that  stood  at  the  north  side  of  the  room.  Vines 
of  smilax  strung  on  gilt  wire  were  draped  about 
the  table,  chandeliers  and  pictures.  The  Grand  Duke 
Alexis  with  Mrs.  Hayes  led  the  promenade  through 
the  East  Room,  the  Marine  Band  playing  the  Russian 
march,  followed  by  the  Grand  Duke  Constantine  and 
Mrs.  Evarts.  The  President  escorted  Lady  Thornton, 
?nd  when  seated  at  the  table,  the  two  Grand  Dukes 
♦,vere  on  either  side  of  Mrs.  Hayes,  and  the  President 
i^at  opposite,  between  Lady  Thornton  and  Mrs.  Shishkin, 
wife  of  the  Russian  Minister.  The  other  members  of 
the  brilliant  company  were  ranged  about  the  table  in 
regular  order.  The  toilette  worn  by  Mrs.  Hayes  at 
this  entertainment  was  an  exquisite  cream-colored y^z7/^, 
richly  trimmed  with  the  material  and  elegant  lace. 

As  regards  the  use  of  wine  on  this  occasion,  about 
which  the  press  of  the  entire  country  had  so  much  to 
say,  the  actual  facts  are  these.  The  President  and  Mrs. 
Hayes  objected  to  its  use,  but  the  Secretary  of  State, 
Mr.  Evarts,  was  of  the  opinion  that  the  Grand  Dukes 
and  other  foreigners,  being  accustomed  to  dine  with 
wine,  would  not  enjoy  their  dinner  without  it,  and  the 
master  of  ceremonies  was  ordered  to  provide  it.  He 
was  at  the  same  time  informed  that  on  all  future  occa- 


650  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

sions,  when  the  President  entertained  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  wine  would  be  omitted. 

In  the  American  Registe7%  at  Paris,  appeared,  shortly 
after  the  inauguration,  the  following  complimentary 
allusion  to  the  new  lady  of  the  White  House:  "The 
administration  of  Mrs.  Hayes  receives  quite  as  much 
attention  as  does  that  of  the  President.  Her  beauty, 
simplicity,  womanliness  and  frankness  have  taken  the 
blase  society  of  Washington  by  storm.  Her  dresses 
of  rich  material  are  very  simply  made,  high  at  the  neck, 
long  at  the  wrist,  with  fine  laces  at  both,  but  no  jewelry ; 
her  hair  is  neither  puffed  nor  frizzed,  but  coiffured  plainly 
at  the  back  and  held  in  place  with  a  shell  comb.  She 
is  a  lady  by  birth  and  education,  and  is  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  The  first  Sunday  she  and 
her  husband  were  in  Washington  they  stole  quietly  to 
the  Foundry  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  while  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Newman,  '  Inspector  of  Consuls,'  Chaplain  to 
the  Senate,  Pastor  of  the  Great  Metropolitan  Court 
Church,  'was  all  primed  and  powdered'  for  their 
appearance.  But  they  came  not.  Everybody  who 
knows  the  style  and  quality  of  the  Metropolitan 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  exceedingly  pleased 
at  the  incident." 

When  Mrs.  Hayes  went  to  the  White  House  it  was 
said  that  she  had  decided  not  to  interfere  with  appoint- 
ments, or  to  consider  any  application  for  her  influence 
in  any  matter  with  which  her  husband  had  to  do. 
Applications  for  office  were  turned  over  to  the  secre- 


ATTENTION    TO    "POOR    RELATIONS."  65 1 

taries,  and  through  the  years  of  her  stay  in  the  White 
House  she  succeeded  in  avoiding  this  source  of  annoy- 
ance. Occasionally  she  deviated  from  this  rule,  as  in  the 
case  of  the  postmistress  of  a  town  in  Pennsylvania,  who 
was  turned  out  of  office  because  of  her  strong  tem- 
perance proclivities.  The  member  of  Congress  who 
represented  the  district  in  which  this  woman  held  office 
succeeded  in  getting  a  man  appointed  in  her  place  who 
would  not  work  with  temperance  organizations  to 
defeat  party  candidates.  The  order  for  her  removal 
had  been  made  out  at  the  Post  Office  Department, 
when  a  lady  friend  of  Mrs.  Hayes,  who  had  passed 
through  the  town  and  learned  the  facts,  telegraphed  to 
her  for  a  stay  of  proceedings  till  the  case  could  be 
explained.  The  request  was  granted,  and  the  next 
news  the  member  ofConsfress  received  from  home  was 
that  the  postmistress  had  been  reinstated  by  order  of 
the  President. 

A  Washington  correspondent  describes  Mrs.  Hayes' 
attention  to  some  "poor  relations"  who  were  visiting 
her.  The  description  is  well  worth  reproducing  as 
showing  her  democratic  independence  and  her  appreci- 
ation of  her  friends. 

"  Not  long  ago  I  was  passing  Corcoran's  Art  Gal- 
lery, and  saw  Mrs.  Hayes  assisting  into  her  carriage 
some  people  of  a  sort  that  are  usually  described  as 
'countrified.'  They  were  not  finely  dressed,  nor  were 
their  garments  fashionably  made.  Quite  the  reverse 
was  the  case.     But  it  struck  me  that  the  horses  were 


652  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

unusually  well  groomed,  and  there  was  a  footman  in 
livery,  which  is  a  bit  of  style  Mrs.  Hayes  seldom 
assumes.  It  was  not  the  every-day  carriage,  either,  but 
the  best  one,  and  I  am  as  sure  as  if  Mrs.  Hayes  had 
told  me  so,  that  she  was  putting  on  a  few  frills  just  to 
please  her  guests,  for  human  nature  is  human  nature, 
and  Mrs.  Hayes  has  a  keen  sense  of  perception.  I 
afterwards  learned  that  a  party  of  Mrs.  Hayes'  friends 
were  visitine  the  White  House,  from  the  interior  of 
Ohio.  They  were  humble  people  and  had  never  been 
in  Washington  before,  but  their  great-grandchildren 
will  all  know  about  that  visit,  and  the  taking  of  those 
folks  around  in  the  President's  best  carriage,  with  driver 
and  footman  in  livery,  will  be  a  tradition  in  that  family 
for  orenerations.  This  wasn't  an  isolated  occurrence. 
Similar  people  have  visted  the  White  House  before,  and 
have  received  similar  attentions.  Mrs.  Hayes  has  taken 
them  to  the  Capitol,  and  they  have  sat  beside  her  in 
the  President's  seat  in  the  reserved  gallery,  and  had  they 
been  the  Queen  of  England  and  the  Princesses  Royal, 
Mrs.  Hayes  couldn't  have  been  more  devoted  than  she 
was  to  her  '  poor  relations.'  " 

Mrs.  Hayes  entertained  many  guests  in  the  White 
House,  and  she  made  it  particularly  attractive  to  her 
young  friends  and  relatives.  She  gave  them  an 
opportunity  of  seeing  Washington  life  from  the  high 
vantaee-eround  of  the  White  House,  and  showed  them 
at  the  same  time  the  domestic  side  of  a  lovely  home- 
life.      No  mistress  of  the    Executive    Mansion,   it   can 


HER   TEMPERANCE    PRINCIPLES.  653 

truly  be  said,  ever  made  more  of  her  opportunity  in 
the  direction  of  true  sociability.  She,  from  the  first, 
displayed  a  generous  hospitality,  not  so  much  to  official 
people  as  to  her  old  friends  and  her  husband's  and  their 
young  connections.  She  exhibited  all  the  possibilities 
of  a  happy  home,  and  left  an  influence  upon  the  grow- 
inii  generation  about  her  that  will  never  be  forofotten. 
In  years  to  come  they  will  tell  of  the  sweet  simplicity 
of  her  life  there,  and  the  great  influence  that  she  had 
over  a  public,  hardly  recovered  from  all  the  excessive 
extravagance  and  display  that  followed  the  restoration 
of  peace,  and  reached  its  height  under  the  preceding 
administration.  There  was  felt  towards  her  a  prejudice 
on  the  part  of  a  portion  of  the  public,  which  opposed 
her  temperance  views,  but  she  has  her  surest  fame  in 
this  stand  which  no  predecessor  of  hers  was  ever  strong 
enough  to  assert  and  maintain.  And  from  the  millions 
of  homes  in  this  country,  where  young  men  are  growing 
to  manhood  with  their  sisters  beside  them,  have  crone 
up  from  the  hearts  of  parents  thankful,  grateful  prayers 
for  the  honor  and  reverence  paid  to  the  one  cause  in 
this  land  which  has  most  lacked  for  recoonition  in  hio-h 

o  o 

places.  Whatever  course  may  be  adopted  by  future 
generations,  the  social  administration  of  Mrs.  Hayes 
marks  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  temperance,  and  it  will 
be  a  mile-stone  to  show  the  turn  in  the  tide  in  favor  of 
this  principle  which  had  languished  for  want  of  just 
the  recognition  she  gave  it  and  her  sex,  its  stand- 
ard-bearer. Such  is  her  fame,  and  her  reward  is  the 
gratitude  of  the  best  men  and  women  of  the  age. 


654  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

Mrs.  Hayes  had  with  her  in  the  White  House  all  of 
her  children,  save  the  eldest  son,  who  is  an  Ohio  lawyer. 
The  second  son,  whose  coming  of  age  was  appropriately 
celebrated  in  the  White  House,  acted  as  his  father's 
confidential  secretary ;  a  third  son  was  at  school,  and  the 
only  daughter  and  youngest  son  were  with  their  parents 
there. 

Mrs.  Hayes  has  the  distinction  of  being  one  of  the 
few  women  who  have  lived  in  the  glare  and  glitter  of 
society  in  W^ashington  and  avoided  all  manner  of  ex- 
tremes in  dress.  She  did  not  appear  in  diamonds,  es- 
chewed low-neck  and  short-sleeved  dresses,  never  varied 
her  individual  fashion  of  arranging  her  hair,  and,  to 
quote  the  remark  of  one  of  her  girlhood  friends,  made 
at  the  commencement  of  her  husband's  administration, 
"she  is  the  same  Lucy  as  of  old."  This  same  friend  said 
of  her,  "It  is  just  like  Lucy  to  go  to  the  Foundry  Church. 
She  always  despised  shams  and  ostentation." 

Of  all  the  Washington  scribes  who  have  written  of 
Mrs.  Hayes,  Mary  Clemmer,  in  describing  the  inaugura- 
tion, has  said  the  most  pleasing  things.  And  the  queries  she 
made  of  her  possible  course  are  answered  in  the  remark 
of  Mrs.  Hayes' school  friend.  She  wrote  ofher  after  seeing 
her  in  the  Senate  Chamber  on  that  auspicious  occasion  : 

"  Meanwhile,  on  this  man  of  whom  every  one  in  the 
nation  is  this  moment  thinking,  a  fair  woman  between 
two  little  children  looks  down.  She  has  a  singularly 
gentle  and  winning  face.  It  looks  out  from  the  bands 
of  smooth  dark  hair  with  that  tender  light  in  the  eyes 


DESCRIPTION    OF    SOCIAL   TRAITS.  655 

which  we  have  come  to  associate  always  with  the  Ma- 
donna. I  have  never  seen  such  a  face  reign  in  the 
White  House.  I  wonder  what  the  world  of  Vanity  Fair 
will  do  with  it?  Will  it  friz  that  hair?  powder  that  face? 
draw  those  sweet,  fine  lines  awry  with  pride  ?  bare  those 
shoulders?  shorten  those  sleeves?  hide  John  Wesley's 
discipline  out  of  sight,  as  it  poses  and  minces  before  the 
first  lady  of  the  land?  what  will  she  do  with  it,  this 
woman  of  the  hearth  and  home  ?  Strong  as  she  is  fair, 
will  she  have  the  grace  to  use  it  as  not  abusing  it;  to  be 
in  it,  yet  not  of  it;  priestess  of  a  religion  pure  and  unde- 
filed,  holding  the  white  lamp  of  her  womanhood,  un- 
shaken and  unsullied,  high  above  the  heated  crowd  that 
fawns,  flatters  and  spoils?  The  Lord  in  heaven  knows. 
All  I  know  is  that  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hayes  are  the  finest- 
looking  type  of  man  and  woman  that  I  have  seen  take 
up  their  abode  in  the  White  House."  This  description 
of  her  tallies  with  that  given  by  a  white-haired  South- 
erner who  went  to  a  White  House  reception,  and  re- 
marked to  his  friends  that  Mrs.  Hayes  was  a  "  God 
beautiful  woman."  President  Hayes  cannot  be  de- 
scribed in  so  graphic  a  way,  though  he  is  a  man  easily 
sketched.  His  eyes  are  blue  and  kindly  in  expression; 
his  features  are  strong  and  his  manners  are  polished. 
His  home  life  is,  as  may  well  be  judged  by  all  that  has 
been  said  in  the  foregoing  sketch,  beautiful.  He  is 
refmed,  affectionate  and  manly,  and  when  he  and  his 
wife  stood  tocrether  in  the  Blue  Room  of  the  White 
House,  on  the  31st  of  December,  1877,  to  celebrate  the 


656  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  their  marriage,  their  friends 
gathered  about  them  coincided  in  the  opinion  that  they 
were  "the  finest-looking  type  of  man  and  woman  that 
they  had  ever  seen  take  up  their  abode  in  the  White 
House."  This  silver-wedding,  the  first  ever  celebrated 
in^  the  White  House,  was  a  social  event  which  proved 
of  genuine  interest  to  the  people  of  the  country,  who, 
irrespective  of  party,  wished  them  a  long-continued 
career  of  happiness.  The  anniversary  was  celebrated 
on  the  afternoon  of  the  30th,  when  the  Rev.  Dr. 
McCabe,  who  married  them,  renewed  his  pastoral  bless- 
ing in  the  saine  words  and  heard  the  same  pledges 
given  that  were  uttered  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago. 
Mrs.  Hayes  wore  the  same  satin  dress  and  slippers 
which  she  wore  on  her  wedding-day,  and  they  were 
surrounded  by  their  five  children  and  the  following 
personal  guests:  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herron,  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Davis,  of  Cincinnati ;  General  and  Mrs.  Force,  Secretary 
Rogers  and  wife.  Miss  Piatt,  Miss  McKell,  Colonel 
Wier,  Miss  Foote  and  Mrs.  Mitchell.  After  the  cele- 
bration of  the  ceremonv  a  most  interestinof  event  fol- 
lowed.  The  infant  dauo-hter  of  Mr.  Herron  was  chris- 
tened,  and  received  the  name  of  Lucy  Webb,  in  honor 
of  Mrs.  Hayes.  After  it  was  baptized  the  President 
presented  his  daughter  Fannie  and  youngest  son  Scott 
Russell,  for  baptism,  and  then  the  party  were  ushered 
into  the  dining-room,  where  dinner  was  served.  The 
next  evening  the  formal  ceremonies  were  held,  and  one 
hundred  guests  were  present.     The  Executive  Mansion 


SILVER    WEDDING.  657 

was  brilliantly  illuminated,  and  the  parlors  and  the  East 
Room  were  elegantly  decorated  with  flowers.  Mrs. 
Hayes  wore  a  reception  dress  of  white  striped  silk, 
trimmed  with  point  lace.  Her  wedding-dress  of  white 
satin  was  exhibited  to  her  lady  friends,  but  the  idea  at 
first  entertained  of  wearing  it  was  abandoned  because 
of  its  size,  it  being  too  small.  The  guests  were  as  far  as 
possible  the  same  who  attended  the  wedding  in  1852, 
and  among  the  number  were  Mr.  Rogers,  the  private 
secretary  and  former  law-partner  of  the  President,  Mr, 
and  Mrs.  Wilber,  Mrs.  Hayes'  former  teachers,  and 
Mrs.  Mitchell,  the  President's  niece,  who  as  a  little  girl 
was  the  bride's  attendant  and  held  her  hand  during  th<i 
ceremony.  A  large  portion  of  the  company  preser^ 
were  Ohioans,  and  the  entertainment  was  social  and  it  - 
formal.  The  only  present  received,  for  it  had  bee  <; 
made  known  distincdy  that  the  President  would  accept 
none,  was  a  gift  to  Mrs.  Hayes  from  the  officers  of  tha 
Twenty-Third  Ohio  Volunteer  Infantry,  consisting  of  a 
silver  plate  imbedded  in  a  mat  of  black  velvet  and  en- 
closed in  a  richly  ornamented  ebony  frame.  The  pres- 
ent was  given  in  memory  of  kindness  received  at  the 
hands  of  Mrs.  Hayes  in  the  field,  and  it  was  inscribed 
on  its  face,  "To  the  Mother  of  the  Regiment."  The  in- 
scription on  the  silver  is : 

"To  Thee,  'Mother  of  ours,'  from  the  23d  O.  V.  I. 
To  Thee,  our  Mother,  on  thy  silver  troth,  we  bring  this 
token  of  our  love.     Thy  boys  give  greeting  unto  thee 

with  burning  hearts.    Take  the  hoarded  treasures  of  thy 
42 


658  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

Speech,  kind  words,  gentle  when  a  gentle  word  was 
worth  the  surgery  of  an  hundred  schools  to  heal  sick 
thought  and  make  our  bruises  whole.  Take  it,  our 
mother:  'tis  but  some  small  part  of  thy  rare  beauty  we 
give  back  to  thee,  and  while  love  speaks  in  silver,  from 
our  hearts   we'll   bribe   Old   Father  Time  to  spare  his 

gift." 

Above  the  inscription  is  a  sketch  of  the  log  hut  erected 
as  Colonel  Hayes'  headquarters  in  the  valley  of  the 
Kanawha,  during  the  winter  of  1863  and  1864,  and 
above  it  the  tattered  and  torn  battle-flags  of  the  regi- 
ment. 

After  the  invitations  were  written,  the  President  per- 
sonally addressed  each  and  added  these  words :  "  I  hope 
you  will  be  present." 

The  White  House  was  a  family  mansion  in  the  fulness 
of  the  term  while  Mrs.  Hayes  was  in  it.  She  kept  it 
filled  with  relatives  and  friends,  and  gave  receptions 
and  entertainments  suited  to  the  tastes  of  those  she  de- 
signed to  honor.  The  President's  niece,  Miss  Piatt,  who 
made  her  home  with  her  uncle,  was  married  in  the  man- 
sion, and  bridal  parties  were  entertained  there  from  all 
parts  of  the  country.  Mrs.  Hayes,  on  one  of  her  tours 
with  her  husband,  was  asked  if  she  did  not  get  tired  of 
seeing  so  many  people  and  going  so  much,  and  she  re- 
plied: "Oh,  no;  I  never  get  tired  of  having  a  good 
time."  She  really  liked  to  meet  the  people  who  wished 
to  see  her,  and  to  shake  hands  with  all  who  chose  to 
offer   her   congratulations    and    respect.     She   was    the 


CLOSING    PUBLIC    ENTERTAINMENTS.  659 

most  Idolized  woman  in  America  during  her  husband's 
administration,  and  not  because  she  held  the  rank  she 
did,  for  many  have  held  it  before  her,  who  were  not 
known  outside  a  small  circle,  but  for  the  reason  that  she 
is  a  loving,  sunny-hearted,  unselfish  woman,  liking  popu- 
larity and  seeking  it  according  to  the  Bible  injunction  : 
"A  man  that  hath  friends  must  show  himself  friendly." 
She  uses  the  world  without  abusinor  it,  and  carries  her- 
self  through  its  pomps  and  vanities  unspotted  and 
pure. 

The  closing  months  of  President  Hayes'  administra- 
tion were  marked  by  national  good  feeling  and  cordial- 
ity, and  the  social  life  of  the  White  House  was  most 
brilliant.  Dinner  parties  and  invitation  receptions  fol- 
lowed each  other  in  rapid  succession,  and  the  guests 
that  were  entertained  there  were  great  in  numbers. 
The  extent  of  her  hospitality  was  estimated  by  ladles 
whose  husbands  had  official  relations  with  the  President, 
and  who  by  right  of  their  positions  were  often  at  the 
White  House  entertainments,  as  being  greater  than  any 
other  hostess  who  had  preceded  her  in  her  high  position. 
She  never  gave  a  dinner  or  an  evening  party  that  w^as 
not  on  a  scale  of  elegance  compatible  with  her  position, 
and  hence  only  praise  can  be  said  of  her  administration. 

One  of  the  most  charmlnor  of  the  entertainments  she 
gave  was  a  lunch  party  to  fifty  young  ladles  in  honor  of 
eight  guests.  There  was  no  married  lady  present  ex- 
cept Mrs.  Hayes.  The  young  ladies  Invited  to  meet  her 
youthful  visitors  were  the  daughters  of  the  members  of 


66o  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

the  Cabinet,  of  the  Chief-Justices,  members  of  Congress, 
of  the  foreign  Ministers,  and  army  and  navy  officers  in 
the  city,  and  they  included  many  beautiful  and  not  a  few 
distinguished  ladies.  The  lunch  was  given  in  the  state 
dining-room,  and  as  only  forty  persons  can  be  seated  at 
the  table,  it  was  extended  by  long  tables  reaching  nearly 
across  the  room,  placed  at  right  angles  with  it  at  each 
end.  Mrs.  Hayes  sat  at  the  head  of  the  room,  and  the 
young  ladies  staying  in  the  house  were  dispersed  among 
the  guests.  No  gentlemen  were  present.  The  tabic 
was  exquisitely  adorned  with  flowers  and  dishes  of  fresh 
and  candied  fruits,  candelabra,  etc.  Potted  plants  were 
also  grouped  about  the  room.  The  plants  and  ferns  in 
the  conservatory  were  seen  to  great  advantage  through 
the  long  windows.  A  photograph  was  taken  of  the 
table  and  the  vista  through  the  conservatories  before  the 
guests  assembled.  The  bon-bons  served  were  of  man}' 
choice  and  novel  varieties,  and  the  meim  included  every 
delicacy.  The  dinner  cards  were  perfectly  plain,  square, 
white  cards,  with  a  silver  edge,  and  the  coat-of-arms  of 
the  United  States  upon  them. 

In  addition  to  the  many  incidental  receptions  and  en- 
tertainments, and  apart  from  the  usual  Presidential  re- 
ceptions, Mrs.  Hayes  was  invariably  at  home  to  welcome 
whoever  chose  to  call  upon  her  from  eight  to  ten  o'clock 
each  evening.  And  there  was  scarcely  an  evening  in 
the  week  when  the  green  parlor  was  not  full  of  people. 
Whether  these  were  strangers  from  out  of  the  city  or 
personal  acquaintance,  they  were  received  informally,  and 


HER    PORTRAIT    PRESENTED.  66'l 

as  they  took  their  departure  it  was  most  usually  the  case 
that  they  carried  away  with  them  flowers,  which  were 
always  to  be  seen  in  all  the  rooms  during  her  life 
there. 

Mrs.  Hayes  left  the  White  House  signally  honored  by 
her  own  sex.  She  received  during  the  closing  days  of 
her  stay  in  Washington  every  recognition  that  the  women 
of  this  country  could  give  her,  and  she  returned  to  her 
home  in  Ohio  assured  of  the  esteem  of  those  whose 
good  opinions  she  would  naturall}'^  value.  She  did  not 
win  the  regard  of  her  sex  by  seeking  for  their  favorable 
opinions,  but  by  being  true  to  herself. 

The  presentation  of  her  portrait,  a  life-size  painting 
by  Huntington,  was  made  to  the  nation  by  the  temper- 
ance people,  who  felt  that  her  course  deserved  some 
more  marked  tribute  than  could  be  paid  her  in  words. 
The  picture  represents  her  standing,  holding  in  her 
hands  a  cluster  of  roses.  She  is  arrayed  in  a  ruby 
velvet,  the  rich  color  being  toned  by  white  laces  about 
her  neck  and  sleeves.  The  canvas  is  seven  feet  four 
inches  high  by  six  feet  wide,  and  the  frame  (of  oak) 
stands  nearly  ten  feet  in  height.  The  sides  of  the  frame 
are  in  the  form  of  pilasters  with  a  capital  at  the  top  and  a 
plinth  at  the  base,  the  sides  supporting  a  rich  projecting 
cornice.  This  cornice  presents  a  hollow  moulding  a  foot 
deep,  on  which  are  carved  branches  of  oak  in  high  relief, 
above  which  is  displayed  in  unique  designs  the  Ameri- 
can flag.  The  capitals  on  the  pilasters  are  in  a  pattern 
of  lilies  (purity),  the  bases  of  these  in  laurel  (victory), 


662  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

the  bottom  in  the  EngHsh  hawthorn  and  the  water  lily, 
the  top  in  oak  leaves  and  acorns  (power  and  strength), 
together  with  several  other  less  noticeable  designs. 
The  frame  was  made  by  the  Cincinnati  School  of  De- 
sign, under  Mr.  Benn  Pitman,  and  is  the  fmest  ever 
carved.  The  presentation  was  made  in  the  East  Room 
on  the  morning  of  the  8th  of  March,  General  Garfield 
replying  to  Miss  Frances  Willard,  who,  as  President  of 
the  National  Woman's  Christian  Temperance  Union, 
tendered  it.  The  event  awakened  interest  throuo-hout 
the  nation.  Everybody  felt  renewed  interest  in  the 
woman  who  had  done  such  worthy  things  as  to  secure 
to  herself  a  followinor  such  as  no  other  member  of  her 
sex  ever  had  in  this  country.  She  came  to  her  fame  step 
by  step,  proving  with  each  day's  life  that  she  was  build- 
ing character  and  not  seeking  applause.  She  had  no 
more  power  in  the  White  House  than  she  had  in  Ohio, 
for  though  her  husband's  ear  was  ever  conveniently 
near  by,  she  did  not  impose  taxes  upon  him  or  make 
him  pay  tribute  to  her  rank  as  his  wife.  With  him  she 
shared  his  high  place,  but  it  was  not  used  selfishly  to 
advance  her  popularity  or  to  win  for  her  aught  of  selfish 
fame.  In  the  midst  of  her  surroundings,  which  were 
outwardly  captivating  enough  to  turn  a  strong  head,  she 
lived  a  self-respecting  life,  individualizing  it  without 
antagonizing  her  husband's  public  interests.  In  the 
stand  she  took  in  refusing  to  use  wine  on  her  table,  she 
exhibited  rare  courage,  because  it  was  not  only  an  un- 
popular step,  but  it  was  one  that  placed  her  in  contrast 


RARE    MORAL   COURAGE.  663 

with  her  predecessors  in  the  position  she  was  holding— 
a  circumstance  whicli  was  her  chief  regret.  As  to  the 
right  of  a  woman  to  take  the  authoritative  stand  she 
did,  she  did  not  stop  to  consider,  for  she  was  in  her  own 
home  even  if  in  the  Executive  Mansion,  and  the  pubHc 
had  no  more  right  to  dictate  what  she  should  drink  than 
what  she  should  eat  or  wear.  Mr.  Hayes,  had  he  set 
aside  her  wishes  and  trampled  her  authority,  would  have 
committed  in  so  doincj  no  act  that  would  have  con- 
demned  him  in  the  eyes  of  the  majority  of  people.  But 
she  reaped  as  she  had  sown,  and  was  respected  in  the 
measure  of  her  self-respect,  and  it  was  this  evidence  of 
her  moral  power,  more  than  the  mere  fact  of  her  being 
a  temperance  advocate,  that  drew  the  women  of  this 
country  about  her.  And  taken  all  in  all,  she  is  one  of 
the  finest  representatives  of  her  sex  who  has  held  the 
place  she  has  filled.  This  is  the  verdict  of  the  women 
of  this  country,  who  by  thousands  signed  the  testimonials 
sent  her,  and  united  in  presenting  to  the  nation  her  por- 
trait, as  a  manifestation  of  their  gratitude  for  worthy 
representation.  It  is  the  first  instance  of  the  kind  in 
the  history  of  any  nation,  and  it  marked  the  prestige  of 
a  people  who  are  every  year  becoming  more  renowned 
throughout  the  world,  and  more  and  more  an  example 
of  the  advancing  power  of  civilization. 

Ex-President  and  Mrs.  Hayes,  accompanied  by  their 
children  and  a  party  of  friends,  left  Washington  on 
Saturday  morning,  the  5th  of  March,  and  hardly  had 
they  begun   their  journey  when  an   accident  occurred 


664  LUCY    WEBB    HAYES. 

which  came  nigh  proving  disastrous.  Fortunately  none 
of  the  persons  with  the  ex-President  were  hurt,  though 
two  persons  on  the  train  were  killed  and  a  number  were 
seriously  injured.  The  accident  occurred  near  Balti- 
more in  the  afternoon  of  the  day  they  left  Washington. 
Arriving  at  Fremont  the  people  received  the  long  absent 
family  with  every  manifestation  of  delight  and  regard, 
and  welcomed  them  with  music,  banners  and  speeches. 
At  night  the  town  was  illuminated,  and  the  house  of  the 
ex-President  was  crowded  with  neighbors  and  friends, 
M'ho  made  the  home-coming  as  pleasant  as  the  God- 
jpeed  had  been  hearty  and  earnest. 


X^-^f<^ 


XXVI. 

LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

A  WOMAN  who  had  known  Mrs.  Garfield  for  a  number 
of  years  previous  to  die  election  of  her  husband  to  the 
Presidency  said  of  her,  in  reply  to  a  question  regarding 
her  fitness  for  the  place  .she  was  to  fill : 

"She  will  have  a  most  beneficent  influence  upon  society 
in  Washington.  She  loves  truth  and  despises  shams. 
She  is  a  woman  of  exceeding  good  sense,  and  will  per- 
iDrm  her  entire  social  duty  when  called  upon." 

"  Will  she  be  popular  with  what  is  called  the  fashion- 
i^.ble  world  ? " 

"  Mrs.  Garfield  is  not  what  would  be  termed  a  fashion- 
able woman  in  Washington,  but  she  will  command  the 
respect  of  all  classes.  She  inclines  to  retirement,  and 
is  very  quiet  and  serious,  naturally." 

"A  home-body,  then  !  " 

"  Yes,  a  home-body ;  and  a  lady  whose  refinement, 
attainments  and  fine  character  the  people  will  like." 

Mrs.  Garfield  went  to  the  White  House  under  the 
most  advantageous  circumstances,  but  it  was  the  com- 
mon remark  of  her  friends  that  she  was  not  likely  to 
make  as  much  of  her  opportunity,  as  the  First  Lady  of 
the  Land,  socially,  as  some  of  her  predecessors  had. 
"  I  hope  I  shall  not  disappoint  you,"  she  said  to  several 
women  who  called  upon  her  during  the  inauguration 

(665) 


666  LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

week.  She  seemed  to  feel  that  more  was  expected  of 
her  than  she  was  hkely  to  perform,  and  her  eyes  were 
full  of  tears  when  she  made  this  remark.  Had  no  cir- 
cumstance occurred  to  call  into  prominence  the  finest 
characteristics  of  her  nature,  she  would  probably  have 
been  slow  in  producing  upon  the  general  public  the 
appreciation  she  deserved.  Her  qualities  of  heart  and 
mind  are  those  that  pass  for  less  than  their  value  in 
what  is  termed  society  life.  She  is  not  a  woman  of 
showy  attainments  ;  is  not  given  to  the  saying  of  sharp 
things  that  sound  clever  when  repeated,  but  generally 
hurt  those  to  whom  they  are  addressed.  She  had  no 
ambition  to  shine  as  the  leader  of  Washington  society, 
as  the  public  discovered  during  the  few  months  of  her 
life  in  the  President's  House.  The  newspapers  over- 
praised her  accomplishments,  and  this  troubled  her,  as 
all  exaggerations  did.  She  remarked  the  injustice  in- 
accurate publications  did  her  predecessors,  but  she  could 
do  nothing  more  than  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  her 
way,  performing  what  she  knew  to  be  her  duty.  The 
earlier  months  of  the  Administration  passed  quietly 
away,  the  social  season  being  over  and  her  health  being 
poor,  and  it  was  remarked  that  she  kept  herself  secluded 
from  public  gaze.  By  and  by  her  severe  illness  was 
announced,  and  the  public  sympathized  with  her  hus- 
band, who  seemed  to  be  borne  down  by  anxiety  and 
dread  lest  she  should  be  taken  from  him. 

It  was  evident  to  those  who  came  in  contact  with  the 
new  Lady  of  the  White  House  that,  though  fragile  in 


HER    CHARACTERISTICS.  667 

appearance,  she  possessed  great  powers  of  endurance, 
and  her  dehberate  and  thouorhtful  utterances  cjave  assur- 
ance  of  a  mind  and  heart  that  could  but  prove  a  blessing 
to  her  in  her  new  field  of  action.  The  qualities  for  which 
she  was  praised  on  every  side  had  characterized  her 
through  life,  but  the  full  opportunity  for  their  display 
came  to  her  for  the  first  time  as  the  President's  wife. 
She  was  found  to  be  undemonstrative  and  self-contained, 
and  showed  by  her  words  and  her  acts  that  she  valued 
the  place  she  occupied  mainly  because  it  reflected  her 
husband's  greatness  and  could  be  made  a  help  to  him. 
Beyond  her  duties  she  had  no  inclinations  or  aspira- 
tions. Her  influence  had  never  been  exerted  selfishly, 
and  she  was  not  likely  to  change  in  any  respect,  because 
she  was  greater  in  herself  than  she  vv'^as  in  the  place 
she  had  been  called  to  fill  for  a  time.  Her  husband's 
interests  were  her  chief  concern,  and  she  lived  at  his 
side,  aidinof  and  blessincr  him.  She  was  to  him  an  in- 
spiration — a  perpetual  joy  and  solace.  He  was  her 
rock  of  strength — her  ever-present  refuge  and  rest. 
He  was  hers,  she  was  his,  and  the  two  were  one  in 
their  children. 

The  story  of  their  two  lives  is  well  known  in  this  coun- 
try. Both  were  born  in  Ohio ;  he  was  the  son  of  a 
widowed  mother,  she  the  daughter  of  a  home  full  of 
children.  Neither  was  well-to-do  in  worldly  ways,  and 
he  was  very  poor,  and  with  nothing  but  a  stout  heart 
and  a  mother's  love  to  depend  upon  in  the  beginning  of 
his  career. 


668  LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

When  the  Httle  girl,  Lucretia  Rudolph,  met  James 
Garfield,  her  senior  by  a  few  years,  he  was  in  the  same 
school  she  attended,  Geauga  Seminary,  and  was  a  strong, 
healthy  boy  who  was  working  assiduously  to  fit  himself 
for  college.  She  v/as  a  studious  girl  who  had  no  very 
definite  plans  until  she  became  acquainted  with  him,  and 
imbibed  his  taste  for  books.  For  several  years  they 
were  at  this  school,  and  then  young  Garfield  entered 
Hiram  College,  just  completed.  In  a  short  time,  through 
the  illness  and  retirement  of  one  of  the  tutors,  he  be- 
came a  teacher,  and  into  his  class-room  came  the 
reserved  young  girl,  who  for  two  years  recited  Latin  to 
him.  He  evidently  taught  her  well,  for  twenty  years 
later  she  instructed  her  boys  in  Latin,  preparatory  to 
their  entering  colleore. 

Her  father,  Mr.  Zebulon  Rudolph,  was  a  farmer  liv- 
ing near  Garrettsvllle,  and  was  one  of  the  founders  of 
Hiram  College.  Her  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Elijah 
Mason,  of  Lebanon,  Connecticut,  and  a  descendant,  on 
her  mother's  side,  of  General  Nathaniel  Greene. 

Her  parents  reared  their  daughter  in  a  practical  man- 
ner, early  imbuing  her  with  ideas  of  self-restraint  and 
self-government  that  admirably  fitted  her  for  her  after 
career. 

After  she  was  graduated  from  Hiram  College  she 
taught  school  in  order  to  relieve  her  parents  of  her  sup- 
port and  lift  herself  above  dependence  upon  them. 
When  Mr.  Garfield  went  to  Williams  Colleore  to  continue 
his  education,  she  went  to  Cleveland,  to  teach  in  one  of 


BEFORE    HER    MARRIAGE.  669 

the  public  schools.  Both  studied :  she,  with  a  view  to 
self-improvement  that  she  might  be  a  fitting  companion 
for  her  ambitious  lover ;  he,  that  he  might  be  prepared 
for  the  place  among  men  he  aspired  to  take.  They 
loved  each  other,  and  were  eno-ao-ed  to  be  married 
before  their  departure  from  Hiram. 

At  the  end  of  the  year  they  met  at  Hiram,  and  when 
he  had  graduated  and  returned  there,  she  was  still  teach- 
ing. She  taught  for  a  year  after,  though  not  in  Cleve- 
land, and  In  a  letter  written  by  the  Hon,  A.  M,  Pratt,  of 
Bayou,  Ohio,  Is  given  this  picture  of  the  two: 

"  Twenty-three  years  ago  Mrs.  Garfield  sought  and 
taught  scholars  in  painting  and  drawing  in  this  then 
very  Insignificant  village,  and  not  getting  very  large 
classes,  living  meantime  in  my  house,  the  guest  and 
friend  of  my  then  wife.  The  future  President  was  fn:;- 
quently  entertained  at  my  table ;  he,  a  young,  strong, 
green,  great-hearted,  large-headed  youth,  but  two  years 
from  college,  hopeful,  full  of  life  and  push  ;  she,  grace- 
ful, sweet,  amiable,  retiring,  with  a  disposition  as  lovely 
as  a  star-lit  sky — both  poor.  Their  fortune  was  their 
youth,  health,  hearts,  intellects,  hopes,  and,  glad  am  I  to 
say,  love." 

The  marriage  took  place  at  the  house  of  the  bride's 
parents,  November  ii,  1S58.  Mr.  Garfield  had  been 
made  Principal  of  Hiram  College,  and  considered  him- 
self fairly  started  in  life,  so  that  there  was  no  reason  for 
lonorer  deferrlns^  the  union.  He  was  not  rich  enoucfh 
to   give  his  bride  a   home,   and   for  some  years   they 


670  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

boarded.  Pupils  of  his  during  that  time  knew  his  wife 
as  a  quiet,  retiring  person,  who  always  welcomed  thern 
kindly  and  showed  real  interest  in  their  school  work  and 
progress.  She  was  an  admirable  school-teacher's  wife, 
because  of  her  acquaintance  with  the  work  and  her  ap- 
preciation of  the  responsibility  as  such.  They  were  a 
poor  couple  and  lived  much  within  themselves  ;  but  they 
were  happily  united  and  congenially  employed.  She 
had  been  taught  by  her  parents — to  whom  she  owes 
much  for  such  instruction  —  to  be  a  truth-speaking, 
right-thinking  young  woman,  and  added  to  this  rare 
traininof  were  her  excellent  school  advantajjes  and  her 
practical  use  of  them.  She  was  the  outgrowth  of  this 
fine  family  government,  and  such  womanhood  as  she  has 
developed  is  a  credit  to  her  and  an  encouragement  to 
other  parents. 

The  husband  she  selected  was  eminently  fitted  by  his 
rearing  to  appreciate  her  worth,  and  it  was  with  genu- 
ine satisfaction  that  their  friends  saw  them  unite  their 
two  lives. 

Of  General  Garfield's  career  much  could  be  written, 
did  the  limits  of  this  sketch  admit.  After  his  election  to 
the  Presidency,  considerable  was  said  of  his  ancestry,  but 
the  people  of  this  country  cared  litde  for  genealogical 
records  in  his  case.  The  story  of  his  mother's  struggles 
to  rear  her  young  children,  the  success  achieved  in 
her  labors,  and  her  own  personal  worth,  added  to  what 
is  known  of  the  character  of  his  early  lost  father,  were 
enough  to  convince  his  country-people  that  he  came  of 
good  stock  and  had  a  glorious  heritage. 


JAMES    GAKFIELD's    LIFE.  67 1 

When  the  father  of  James  Garfield  lay  dying,  he 
pointed  to  his  children,  and  said  to  his  wife,  "  Eliza,  I 
have  planted  four  saplings  in  these  woods  ;  I  leave  them 
to  your  care."  He  was  buried  in  a  corner  of  a  w^heat 
field  on  his  little  farm,  and  the  mother  and  her  boys 
worked  in  the  fields  together.  James  was  her  baby. 
When  he  was  four  years  old  he  went  to  the  district 
school.  He  was  sent  thus  early  that  he  might  learn  to 
read  and  write  before  he  became  old  enough  to  assist 
on  the  farm.  The  three  elder  children  were  at  work, 
and  when  the  mother  could  spare  time  from  her  in- 
door duties  she  helped  them  to  gather  hay,  plant 
corn,  and,  wnth  her  eldest  boy's  aid,  she  cleared  new- 
land  and  fenced  it  in.  Litde  James  learned  to  spell  and 
read,  and  imbibed  with  every  passing  day  the  inspira- 
tion of  purpose  and  reverence  for  work  that  came  by- 
and-by  to  be  second  nature  to  him.  His  mother  early 
saw  that  he  loved  study,  and  she  determined  to  help 
him  gratify  his  taste.  She  could  not  send  him  to 
school  in  winter,  because  it  was  too  far  for  his  little  feet 
to  plod  alone,  and  she  oft'cred  to  give  a  corner  out  of 
her  farm  if  her  neighbors  would  put  up  a  school-house. 
It  was  done,  and  James  became  a  pupil.  He  carried 
home  a  New  Testament  at  the  close  of  the  first  term 
for  being  the  best  boy  in  school. 

When  he  was  sixteen  he  walked  sixteen  miles  to  offer 
his  services  to  a  farmer  who  wanted  laborers.  He  was 
asked  what  pay  he  expected,  and  replied,  "A  man's 
wages — a  dollar  a  day."     It  was  refused,  and  then  he 


6/2  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

volunteered  to  mow  hay  by  the  acre,  with  the  help  of  a 
boy  older  than  himself.  The  offer  was  accepted,  and  he 
earned  his  dollar  before  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

Who  does  not  know  the  story  of  his  life  ?  The 
tow-boy  on  the  Erie  Canal ;  the  steersman ;  the  labor- 
loving  and  industrious  widow's  son  whose  respect 
for  women  all  through  his  life  was  founded  on  his  re- 
spect for  his  mother.  He  was  not  long  from  home  at 
any  time,  because  she  could  not  bear  it,  and  when  he 
talked  about  being  a  sailor  she  told  him  of  a  better 
life  to  lead.  She  was  no  drudge  whose  poverty  had 
quelled  ambition.  She  was  a  true  mother,  and  lived 
over  her  life  in  her  children.  To  her  persevering  per- 
suasions her  boy  owed  his  opportunity  for  study.  Had 
she  possessed  riches  she  could  not  have  done  more 
for  him  and  might  have  done  less.  Her  youngest  born, 
who,  the  neighbors,  looking  at  in  the  cradle,  thought 
would  be  better  off  out  of  the  world  than  in  it,  followed 
the  way  she  led,  and  gave  up  his  desire  to  work  in 
order  to  get  an  education.  She  was  helped  in  her 
effort  by  a  spell  of  sickness  he  had,  and  which  kept  him 
in  the  house  with  her.  To  that  attack  of  ague,  and  the 
opportunity  it  gave  his  mother,  he  largely  owed  his 
future  career. 

If  anybody  in  the  day  of  his  power  was  surprised  at 
the  extreme  and  enthusiastic  devotion  he  paid  his 
mother,  it  was  from  a  lack  of  knowledge  of  how  he 
loved  her.  The  sons  of  widows  are,  as  a  rule,  far 
more    appreciative    of  their    mothers    than    are    other 


ELECTED    TO    THE    SENATE.  6']'^ 

boys.  It  needs  not  a  very  extended  outlook  of  his- 
tory to  be  able  to  recall  numerous  instances  of  this 
truth,  and  among  the  Presidents  themselves  arc  several 
notable  examples  of  the  influence  of  widowed  mothers 
over  ambitious  sons.  And  it  is  well  to  observe  that 
great  men  who  have  owed  their  training  directly  to  their 
mothers  have  never  failed  to  be  the  strictest  observers 
of  the  fifth  commandment.  It  is  not  possible  in  the 
limits  of  this  sketch  to  trace  all  the  struggles  of  tlie 
youth  to  get  an  education.  His  history  is  one  that 
should  be  studied  by  the  young  of  both  sexes  in  this 
country.  The  life-work  of  Mother  Garfield  is  written  in 
the  worthy  liv^es  of  all  her  children,  and  imperishably 
in  the  fame  of  her  "  baby  "  boy,  the  twentieth  President 
of  the  United  States. 

I\Ir.  and  Mrs.  Garfield  resided  in  Hiram  until  i860, 
when  he  was  elected  to  the  State  Senate,  and  went  to 
Columbus.  He  had  previous  to  this  time  made  up  his 
mind  that  he  would  become  a  lawyer,  and  was  admitted 
to  the  bar.  His  intention  was  to  settle  in  Cleveland 
and  practise  his  profession,  and  he  doubtless  would  have 
done  so  but  for  the  breaking  out  of  the  war.  In  1861 
he  left  the  Senate  to  become  Colonel  of  the  Forty-second 
Ohio  Regiment,  At  an  earlier  period  of  his  life,  and 
while  a  teacher,  he  had  become  a  preacher  of  the  Church 
of  the  Disciples — a  sect  known  as  the  Campbellites. 
His  ministerial  work  was,  however,  incidental,  and  not 
at  any  time  a  regular  pursuit,  though  his  friends  desired 
him  to  adopt  it  as  such. 
43 


674  lucrf:tia  rudolpii  gakfield. 

Mr.  Garfield  went  to  the  war  a  poor  man,  not  even 
owning  a  home,  and  it  was  with  money  saved  while 
in  the  service  that  his  wife  bouo^ht  a  house  and  lot  at 
Hiram,  for  which  ;^8oo  was  paid.  His  wife  and  chil- 
dren lived  in  that  modest  little  cottage,  which  he  greatly 
improved,  and  owned  no  other  house  until,  in  1870,  after 
several  years  of  Congressional  life,  he  built  himself  a 
dwelling  in  Washington.  When  he  went  to  Congress 
his  salary  of  ^5,000  a  year  was  the  largest  amount  of 
money  he  had  ever  earned,  and  with  a  feeling  of  les- 
sened pecuniary  cares  was  entertained  the  desire  of 
owning  a  farm  in  Ohio,  where  his  fast-growing  boys 
could  spend  their  vacations,  and  where  he  could  give 
his  wife  and  himself  the  rest  they  required  after  the  busy 
winters  in  Washington.  Lawnfield,  a  place  now  historic, 
was  purchased,  and  Mrs.  Garfield  designed  the  house, 
which  was  erected  in  1880,  and  into  which  the  family 
moved  that  summer. 

The  long  years  of  the  war  were  spent  by  Mrs.  Gar- 
field at  her  home  in  Hiram.  Her  parents  were  living 
not  far  away,  and  the  absence  of  the  husband  and  father 
was  as  far  as  possible  atoned  for  by  the  presence  of  rela- 
tives and  the  companionship  of  Mother  Garfield,  whose 
home  was  with  her  son  from  the  time  he  had  one  to 
offer  her.  The  months  dragged  slowly  by,  until  after 
the  battle  of  Corinth,  when  Mrs.  Garfield  was  glad- 
dened by  the  return  of  her  husband,  now  Brigadier- 
General,  who  remained  at  home  for  six  months  suffering 
from  fever  and  ague,  contracted  on   the   tow-path  when 


DEATH    OF    A    CHILI).  675 

a  boy,  and  from  the  effects  of  which  he  was  never  able 
to  completely  rid  himself. 

On  his  return  to  the  front  he  joined  General  Rose- 
cranz  as  Chief  of  Staff,  and  at  the  battle  of  Chickamauga 
he  won  his  Major-General's  stars. 

It  was  during  this  absence  that  he  lost  his  infant 
dauQrhter,  and  when  the  news  reached  him  he  has- 
tened  home  to  attend  the  funeral.  His  dead  child  was 
photographed  in  his  arms,  and  this  picture  is  among 
the  treasures  cherished  of  him  now.  He  was  greatly 
attached  to  his  children,  and  in  speaking  of  his  lost  one 
and  the  circumstance  mentioned,  he  said  to  his  friend, 
President  Hinsdale  :  "As  I  sat  with  that  dead  child  in  my 
arms  my  eyes  rested  upon  my  bright  blue  uniform,  so 
recently  bestowed  upon  mc,  and  I  thought:  'How  small 
are  all  the  honors  of  this  life — how  insi^rnificant  are  all 
its  struggles  and  triumphs  !  '  I  am  grieved  and  broken 
in  spirit  at  the  great  loss  which  has  been  inflicted  upon 
me,  but  I  can  endure  almost  anvthincr  so  lone  as  this 
brave  little  woman  is  left  me." 

While  at  the  front  the  people  of  his  district  elected 
him  to  Congress  ;  and,  in  1863,  his  career  in  Washington 
began,  and  for  eight  terms  he  was  re-elected.  Afterward 
he  was  chosen  to  succeed  Mr.  Thurman  in  the  Senate. 
The  first  years  General  Garfield  lived  in  Washington, 
whether  in  boarding-houses  or  in  rented  dwellings,  his 
wife  and  himself  were  people  of  no  great  prominence 
socially,  because  they  were  poor ;  both  were  busy  and 
their  children  absorbed  their  eveningrs.     Their  circle  of 


676  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

friends  was  a  charming  one,  however,  because  their  quiet 
tastes  and  studious  habits  made  them  attractive  to  really 
accomplished  people. 

When  Mrs,  Garfield  moved  into  her  own  house  she 
was  as  happy  as  a  woman  could  be,  and  her  husband 
was  not  less  pleased  that  he  could  at  last  shelter  his 
children  under  his  own  roof  and  at  his  own  fireside. 
Doubtless,  this  time  spent  in  their  modest  home  was  as 
free  from  care  as  any  they  ever  knew.  But  wherever 
they  were  they  were  happy  together.  The  mother 
had  her  heart's  desire  in  giving  her  children  the  careful 
home-trainingf  she  could  not  have  bestowed  without 
such  a  home  as  she  possessed.  Her  house  was  a  real 
home  because  her  husband  was  one  with  her  in  all 
things,  and  his  life  and  hers  were  not  separated  in 
pleasure  or  in  duty.  She  was  as  fond  of  books  as  he, 
and  he  was  always  her  teacher.  It  was  beyond  doubt 
due  to  his  influence  over  her  life  in  its  formative  period 
that  she  became  a  teacher.  Her  appreciation  of  his 
ability  and  their  kindred  tastes  made  them  comrades  in 
study  and  in  work.  They  were  united  in  more  than  in 
their  domestic  relations,  and  grew  nearer  together  as 
the  years  passed. 

It  is  rarely  that  two  people  marry,  who  have  known 
each  other  so. long  and  so  well  as  did  this  couple,  and  it 
is  one  of  the  causes  of  congratulation  that  their  ex- 
ample  has  been  so  prominently  set  before  the  world. 
Men  and  women  of  the  nobler  sort,  who  appreciate  the 
need  there  is  in  public  life  of  notable  examples  of  happy 


LETTER    TO    HER    HUSBAND.  677 

marriages  will  never  regret  that  the  opportunity  was 
given  this  man  and  woman  to  discover  their  home-life 
to  the  people  of  this  country,  however  much  they  may 
deplore  the  terrible  calamity  that  was  the  means  of  un- 
veiling the  sacred  side  of  their  lives  to  the  world.  The 
comfort  it  is  to  the  American  people — in  view  of  the 
world-wide  publicity  given  the  slightest  circumstance 
connected  wath  their  career — that  these  two  people  were 
so  admirable  in  their  personal  characters  and  in  their 
home-life,  has  not  been  fully  realized  generally ;  but  it  is 
undeniably  true  that  it  was  the  one  sweet  strain  that 
sanof  itself  into  the  wounded  hearts  of  a  nation  in  their 
time  of  grief  and  pain. 

Ten  years  before  Mrs.  Garfield  went  into  the  White 
House,  and  during  one  summer  w^hcn  the  family  were 
in  Ohio,  she  was  compelled  to  do  much  of  her  own 
work.  In  the  temporary  absence  of  her  husband  from 
home,  she  wrote  him  a  letter,  which,  intended  for  no 
other  eye  than  his,  fell  into  the  hands  of  President  Hins- 
dale, who  made  an  extract  from  it  for  the  use  of  his 
pupils,  as  showing  the  character  of  the  President's  wife 
and  her  views  upon  the  subject  of  woman's  work.  It  is 
appropriate  here,  and  is  as  follows: 

"  I  am  glad  to  tell  that  out  of  all  the  toil  and  disap- 
pointments of  the  summer  just  ended,  I  have  risen 
up  to  a  victory;  that  silence  of  thought  since  you  have 
been  away  has  won  for  my  spirit  a  triumph.  I  read 
something  like  this  the  other  day:  'There  is  no  healthy 
thoug;;ht  without   labor,   and   thouMit   makes   the   labor 


678  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

happy.'  Perhaps  this  is  the  way  I  have  been  able  to 
dimb  up  higher.  It  came  to  me  one  morning  when  I 
was  making  bread.  I  said  to  myself,  '  Here  I  am  com- 
pelled by  an  inevitable  necessity  to  make  our  bread  this 
summer.  Why  not  consider  it  a  pleasant  occupation, 
and  make  it  so  by  trying  to  see  what  perfect  bread  I 
can  make  ? '  It  seemed  like  an  inspiration,  and  the 
whole  of  life  grew  brighter.  The  very  sunshine  seemed 
flow^ing  down  through  my  spirit  into  the  white  loaves, 
and  now  I  believe  my  table  is  furnished  with  better 
bread  than  ever  before  ;  and  this  truth,  old  as  creation, 
seems  just  now  to  have  become  fully  mine — that  I  need 
not  be  the  shrinking  slave  of  toil,  but  its  regal  master, 
making  whatever  I  do  yield  me  its  best  fruits.  You 
have  been  king  of  your  work  so  long  that  maybe  you 
laugh  at  me  for  having  lived  so  long  without  my  crown, 
but  I  am  too  glad  to  have  found  it  at  all  to  be  entirely 
discontented  even  by  your  merriment.  Now,  I  wonder 
if  ri^rht  here  does  not  lie  the  '  terrible  wrongr,'  or  at  least 
some  of  it,  of  which  the  woman  suffragists  complain. 
The  wrongly  educated  woman  thinks  her  duties  a  dis- 
grace, and  frets  under  them  or  shrinks  them  if  she  can. 
She  sees  man  triumphantly  pursuing  his  vocations,  and 
thinks  it  is  the  kind  of  work  he  does  which  makes  him 
grand  and  regnant;  whereas  it  is  not  the  kind  of  work 
at  all,  but  the  way  in  which  he  does  It." 

In  this  letter  is  discovered  the  quality  for  which  Mrs. 
Garfield  is  distinguished — self-discipline.  She  is  a  woman 
fitted  for  emergencies,  and  it  requires  them  to  show  her 


HER    husband's    TRIBUTE.  679 

real  worth.  The  coiurol  she  has  over  her  emotional 
nature  crives  her  an  immense  advantage  in  meetino-  a 
trying  exigency.  She  withstands  surprises,  shocks  and 
disasters  with  a  steady  courage  that  commands  respect, 
and  long  ago  made  her  a  heroine  in  the  eyes  of  lier  hus- 
band. In  speaking  to  a  friend,  a  few  months  before  he 
was  inaugurated,  while  remarking  upon  some  public 
man  whose  domestic  affairs  had  crippled  his  course  of 
usefulness,  he  said  of  her: 

"I  have  been  singularly  fortunate  in  marrying  a 
woman  who  has  never  given  me  any  perplexity  about 
anything  she  has  said.  I  have  never  had  to  explain 
away  words  of  hers.  She  has  been  so  prudent  that  I 
have  never  been  diverted  from  my  work  for  one  minute 
to  take  up  an)-  mistakes  of  hers.  She  is  perfectly  un- 
stampedable.  When  things  get  worse  and  there  is  the 
most  public  clamor  and  the  most  danger  to  me  and  to 
us,  then  she  is  the  coolest.  Sometimes  it  looks  a  little 
blue  before  me,  but  I  get  courage  from  her  perfect 
bravery." 

A  Washington  correspondent,  in  writing  of  Mrs.  Gar- 
field, paid  her  this  tribute  : 

"She  was  in  Washington  City  during  the  years  of  ex- 
travagance, and  almost  every  Congressman's  wife  had 
a  carriage  and  every  house  competed  for  brilliant  vis- 
itors. She  lived  throuorh  that  time  as  if  she  belonged 
to  a  different  social  scale.  She  would  not  refuse  to  see 
anybody,  but  was  seldom  dressed  as  if  ready  for  com- 
pany.    She  never  apologized  for  her  appearance,  and 


6So  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

she  made  visits  about  twice  or  three  times  a  year,  gen- 
erally calling  on  foot,  but  never  failing  to  please  with 
the  sweetness  of  her  countenance,  the  beauty  of  her 
eyes,  and  a  self-restraint  and  reserve  perfectly  natural." 

Another  correspondent,  in  referring  to  the  same 
period,  says : 

"Quietly,  but  with  the  truest  kindness,  has  Mrs.  Gar- 
field presided  over  her  modest  house  at  the  corner  of 
Thirteenth  and  I  streets,  in  this  city,  during  the  years 
since  General  Garfield  purchased  it.  In  it  she  has  en- 
tertained, often  in  the  simplest  style,  but  ever  with  old- 
fashioned,  true-hearted  hospitality,  all  of  wit,  wisdom, 
beauty  that  Washington  has  had  during  the  years  she 
has  been  here.  She  is  an  accomplished  hostess  as  well 
as  an  accomplished  woman — they're  two  very  different 
thinofs.  Livino-  as  the  Garfields  have  had  to  live,  in  the 
most  economical  way,  doing  without  elegant  clothes,  fine 
furniture,  sumptuous  food,  good,  new,  and  rare  old 
books,  dearer  than  all  else  to  them,  they  have  con- 
tributed more  to  make  Washington  winter  life  pleasant 
and  profitable  than  many  other  families  who  have  sup- 
plemented less  taste  and  culture  with  more  money. 
Mrs.  Garfield's  receptions  have  been  the  largest  ever 
held  by  the  wife  of  a  mere  Representative.  They  have 
far  surpassed  those  of  more  ambitious  Senators'  wives, 
and  have  approximated  those  of  the  ladies  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  and  Cabinet  families  in  size  merely.  In 
attractions  they  have  stood  abreast  of  any  of  them. 
This  simply  because   Mrs.  Garfield  is  a  sweet-tempered, 


THE    FAMILY    AT    MENTOR.  68 1 

cultured,  refined  woman,  in  whose  smile  it  is  a  pleasure 
to  bask. 

"  When  we  consider  that,  without  allowing-  her  mani- 
fold cares  to  interfere  with  the  performance  of  her  social 
duties,  she  has  managed  her  establishment  alone,  and 
personally  conducted  the  training  of  her  boys  for  col- 
lege, we  can  conceive  her  superiority,  widi  all  her  social 
success,  to  the  mere  'society  leader.'  General  Garfield 
is  the  president  of  our  literary  society,  and  during  the 
past  year  it  has  met  at  his  house.  It  was  more  pleas- 
antly entertained  there  than  it  had  ever  been  before. 
Mrs.  Garfield  exerted  even  her  latent  social  powers  that 
night,  and  it  was  difficult  for  her  guests  to  break  away 
from  her  delightful  parlors." 

The  summer  preceding  the  Chicago  Convention,  the 
Garfield  family  went  to  Mentor  rather  late  in  the  season, 
and  remained  there  throuQ^h  the  fall  and  winter.  It  had 
been  their  intendon  to  return  to  Washinofton  as  usual 
before  the  reassemblino-  of  Conofress,  but  the  result  of 
the  Convention  changed  previous  plans,  and  the  house- 
hold continued  there  until  the  week  before  the  inaugu- 
ration. During  that  time  the  crowds  continually  visiting 
Mentor  left  Mrs.  Garfield  but  little  time  for  relaxation  and 
rest.  She  was  in  the  midst  of  excitement  of  a  political 
kind  constantly,  and  to  it  were  added  the  onerous  duties 
of  hostess — a  position  scarcely  to  be  desired,  under  such 
circumstances.  She  shrank  from  the  publicity  which  the 
nomination  of  her  husband  to  the  hiofhest  crift  in  the 
nation  subjected  her,  though  she  met  the  requirements 


682  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

of  the  position  with  a  pleasant  demeanor  and  quiet  re- 
serve natural  to  her. 

The  newspapers  abounded  in  personal  allusions  to 
the  family,  and  many  efforts  were  made  to  obtain  her 
photograph  for  publication  in  the  illustrated  periodicals. 
This  she  would  not  permit  either  during-  the  canvass  or 
after  the  election.  It  was  not  in  her  power,  however,  to 
prevent  those  who  had  her  picture  from  showing  it  to 
their  friends,  and  finally  she  recognized  the  natural 
desire  of  the  public  to  see  the  photograph  of  the  Lady 
of  the  White  House,  and  she  sat  for  one  that  was 
approved  by  herself  and  husband.  The  engraving 
accompanying  this  sketch  is  from  that  photograph,  and 
is  a  correct  likeness  of  her,  as  she  appeared  at  that 
time. 

Though  the  newspapers  could  not  obtain  her  photo- 
graph, the  correspondents  made  pen-pictures  of  herself 
and  her  home.  One  of  them  (writing  to  the  Detroit 
Evening  News)  gave  so  pleasant  a  picture  of  her  that 
it  is  reproduced  in  part.  It  was  written  shortly  after 
the  election  : 

"  The  historic  orchard  and  pumpkin-fields  were  lying 
peacefully  now  under  their  snowy  covering,  and  giving 
no  signs  of  the  recent  scenes  of  devastation.  Crossing 
the  wide  veranda,  the  solitary  pilgrim  rang  the  bell, 
and  was  ushered  by  a  wonderfully  patient-looking  col- 
ored man-servant  into  the  reception-room,  although 
that  is  quite  too  formal  a  name  to  give  a  room  com- 
bining such  an  air  of  comfort  with  its  elegance ;  it  is  the 


DESCRIPTION    OF    HER    HOME.  683 

emanation  of  an  artist  and  a  fireside  genius  in  one,  and 
you  are  not  surprised  to  learn  later  that  the  mistress  of 
the  mansion  is  an  artist  of  considerable  skill.  A  royal 
grate-fire  burns  brightly  at  one  end  of  the  room,  over 
which  is  a  Queen  Anne  mantel,  with  cabinet  photo- 
graphs of  Garfield  and  Arthur,  painted  candles,  and 
numerous  articles  of  bric-a-brac.  At  the  opposite  end 
of  the  apartment  stands  a  fine  upright  piano,  adorned 
with  photographs  of  Hancock,  Marshall  Jewell  and  Ole 
Bull.  Over  this  is  a  French  picture  in  bright  water- 
colors,  on  one  side  of  which  hangs  a  copy  of  Meisso- 
nier's  Napoleon,  on  the  other  a  little  landscape,  painted 
and  given  her,  Mrs.  Garfield  relates,  by  her  old  draw- 
in'>-  teacher,  of  whom  she  tells  some  interestincf  re- 
miniscences. 

"The  quiet  tinted  walls  of  the  reception-room  are 
further  adorned  with  large  portraits  of  the  General  and 
his  mother,  one  of  Alexander  Campbell,  the  founder  of 
the  faith  which  Garfield  indorses,  and  a  number  of 
other  pieces,  among  them  a  copy  of  Miss  Ransom's 
'  Hagar  and  her  Son,'  from — '  let  me  see  if  I  can  re- 
member the  name,'  Mrs.  Garfield  said,  turning  the  pic- 
ture and  spelling  out  the  Italian  name  from  a  card  on 
the  back.  '  Miss  Ransom  put  the  card  there  so  that  I 
shouldn't  forget  the  name,  because  he  was  not  one  of 
the  best  known  painters.' 

"  And  this,'  pointing  to  a  little  gilt  frame  decorated 
with  pansies,  'was  sent  to  the  General  by  a  litde  Ver- 
mont girl,  her  own  work,  and  the  verse  inscribed  on  it 
was  written  for  her  by  Whittier,' 


6S4  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

"  In  this  Interest  in  her  pictures  and  their  histories 
Mrs.  Garfield  showed  constantly  the  artistic  element  in 
her  nature,  as  well  as  in  a  hundred  touches  about  the 
rooms. 

"A  small-figured  dark  carpet  covered  the  floor,  a 
Smyrna  rug  lay  before  the  fire,  in  the  glow  of  which  sat 
the  famous  grandmother,  a  quaint  little  figure,  making 
with  her  snowy  hair  and  cap,  and  her  knitting-work,  a 
fitting  adjunct  to  an  'interior'  charming  enough  for 
anybody's  pencil.  There  were  easy-chairs  and  lounges, 
speaking  of  solid  comfort,  and  a  little  centre-table  piled 
up  carelessly  with  all  kinds  of  books,  school-books, 
story-books,  a  gay-colored  copy  of-  CJiic,  a  life  of  the 
President-elect,  and  '  Bits  of  Talk,'  by  H.  H.,  being 
among  them.  And  there  were  also  upon  that  table — 
yes,  actually,  dear  prim  housekeepers — the  well-known 
slouch  hat  of  the  General's,  and  a  roll  of  red  flannel, 
with  a  thimble  beside  it. 

"  Everywhere — in  every  nook  and  corner — there  are 
books.  A  case  in  the  parlor  contains  editions  of 
Waverley  and  Dickens,  French  history  in  the  original, 
old  English  poets  and  dramatists  richly  bound  in  black 
and  gold,  and  a  choice  collection  of  m.iscellaneous 
works  ;  in  the  little  hallway  leading  to  the  dining-room 
are  books,  and  In  the  dining-room  itself  more  books. 
The  last  is  a  cheery  room  with  its  handsome  tiled  man- 
tle, open  fire,  pictures  and  shining  silver.  There  is 
everywhere  evidence  of  the  dainty  housekeeper. 

"The  pilgrim  wandered  out  through  the  back  regions 


MRS.    GARFIELD    AT    HOME.  685 

of  the  house  where  the  tin  wash-basin  and  milk-cans, 
which  were  really  seen,  would  no  doubt  be  deemed 
objects  of  sacred  interest  to  the  enthusiastic  adorer,  and 
crossed  over  to  the  detached  office,  whose  walls  are 
lined  with  ponderous  volumes,  and  where  busy  clerks 
and  a  pecviliar  hum  of  the  wires  gives  one  some  idea  of 
the  work  done  there,  A  peculiarity  of  the  telegraph 
wires  runninor  into  General  Garfield's  office  is  that  tlie 
sound  of  Cleveland's  church-bells  is  conveyed  distinctly 
over  them,  thirty  miles. 

"Under  a  tree  near  the  office  was  a  spirited  picture. 
The  two  youngest  scions  of  the  house  and  the  great 
Newfoundland  dog,  all  three  in  a  state  of  frantic  de- 
light, were  chasing  a  coon  which  had  been  sent  the 
General  by  train  that  morning,  a  sample  of  the  odd  and 
incongruous  quality  of  the  presents  which  are  showered 
upon  the  family.  Returning  to  the  parlor,  the  visitor 
found  Mrs.  Garfield  seated  before  the  fire,  and  received 
her  pleasant  and  cordial  consent  to  the  sketching  of  her 
home  for  the  benefit  of  the  public,  who  have  a  natural 
and  loyal  interest  in  it.  To  those  who  would  wish  to 
see  a  brilliant  society  leader  in  the  White  House,  Mrs. 
Garfield  will  perhaps  be  a  disappointment ;  but  those 
who  have  been  led  to  think  of  her  as  a  retiring,  mere 
domestic  woman,  inadequate  to  the  position,  will  also 
be  disappointed.  She  is  a  lady  of  admirable  self-poise, 
dignity  and  thorough  culture,  reserved  yet  affable,  and 
with  the  distino-uishinor  trait  of  ijenuineness.  There 
is    not  a  trace    of  affectation    about    her.     A   Mentor 


6S6  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

gentleman  remarked,  'There  isn't  a  family  in  town, 
apparently,  so  little  set  up  by  the  situation  as  the 
Garfields.' 

"When  asked  if  she  dreaded  the  coming  responsibil- 
ities (so  much  has  been  said  of  her  retiring  nature),  she 
said,  slowly,  with  her  brown  eyes  fixed  thoughtfully  on 
the  fire:  'Yes,  in  many  ways;  but  it  has  always  been 
my  experience,  so  far,  that  one  grows  fitted  for  respon- 
sibility as  it  comes.  My  greatest  fear  is  that  the  time 
will  slip  by,  and  when  it  is  over  I  shall  have  it  to  look 
back  to  with  regret  for  the  many  things  that  ought  to 
have  been  done.' 

"  With  such  a  spirit  it  will  be  safe  to  trust  the  woman 
influence  in  the  next  administration.  That  it  is  going 
to  be  an  influence  that  will  be  felt,  no  one  who  is  ac- 
quainted with  Mrs.  Garfield  doubts 

"Her  youth  was  spent  quietly  at  Hiram,  and  there 
were  struijeles  connected  with  it,  in  obtainino-  her  edu- 
cation,  which  have  doubtless  aided  in  developing  her 
self-reliant  spirit.  Since  marriage  her  life  has  been  de- 
voted to  her  family,  but  she  has  always  given  up  a  great 
deal  of  time  to  the  rites  of  hospitality. 

'"Bless  you,'  said  a  local  gossip,  'they  have  always  been 
overrun  with  visitors.  Why,  Mrs.  Garfield  hasn't  had  a 
chance  to  get  acquainted,  hardly,  with,  people  here.'  The 
same  oracle  said  : '  Mrs.  Garfield  is  wonderfully  firm  ;  if  she 
once  makes  up  her  mind  to  a  thing  nothing  can  turn  her. 
Now,  the  general  can  be  coaxed,  but  they  both  have 
splendid  family  government.'  .  .  .  The  pilgrim  boarded 


PERSONAL    APPEARANCE.  687 

the  train,  with  a  good-bye,  for  Mentor,  and  an  uncom- 
monly pleasant  picture  tucked  away  in  his  memory  of  a 
charming-  home,  and  of  the  future  mistress  of  the  White 
House.  The  latter  picture  is  in  personnel  a  slende'". 
graceful  lady,  with  a  transparently  clear  complexion, 
with  delicate  features,  and  clear,  penetrating,  brown 
eyes  ;  hair  the  same  shade  of  brown,  worn  in  a  braid  at 
the  back,  and  frizzed  quite  in  conventional  style  in  front. 
A  dark  blue  dress,  simple  lace  tie,  and  little  or  no  jew- 
elry, completed  the  lady's  home  appearance. 

"A  gentleman,  well  acquainted  with  the  family,  re- 
marked: 'Mrs.  Garfield  looks  a  little  worn  now,  and  no 
wonder.  She  has  changed  a  good  deal  within  the  last 
year.  When  she  got  the  telegram  announcing  the  nom- 
ination the  tears  came  into  her  eyes,  and  when  she  was 
asked  if  she  was  not  glad  and  proud  to  hear  it,  she  said  : 
"Oh,  yes;  but  it  is  a  terrible  responsibility  to  come  to 
him  and  to  me  ;"  but  I  tell  you  she  has  put  her  shoulder 
to  the  wheel  bravely  so  far,  and  she  will  continue  to  the 
end.'  " 

The  allusion  to  Miss  Ransom,  the  artist,  in  this  ex- 
tract, recalls  the  fact  that  a  year  or  more  previous  to 
the  election,  General  Garfield  commissioned  her  to  paint 
a  portrait  of  Mrs.  Garfield.  The  two  were  old  Cleve- 
land friends,  and  had  been  intimately  associated  for  years. 
The  portrait  was  painted,  and  during  the  week  of  the  in- 
auguration it  was  seen  by  many  strangers  in  Washington 
who  visited  her  studio.  She  told  a  characteristic  thing 
of  Mrs.  Garfield  in  connection  with  this  portrait.     Miss 


6S8  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

Ransom  for  a  background  sketched  a  beautiful  view  from 
the  Soldiers'  Home,  showing  the  Capitol,  and  the  Poto- 
mac, like  a  thread  of  silver,  in  the  far  distance.  Mrs. 
Garfield  objected  to  it,  saying,  "  That  will  do  for  a  Pres- 
ident's wife  who  resides  at  the  Soldiers'  Home  a  part 
of  each  year,  but  not  for  me."  The  artist  argued  and 
pleaded,  but  in  vain.  Mrs.  Garfield  was  decided  in  her 
mind,  and  refused  to  have  it.  She  however  added  to 
her  objection  the  remark,  that  she  would  be  pleased  if 
there  could  be  introduced  into  the  picture  a  view  of 
Franklin  Park — "  the  corner  opposite  my  window,  where 
I  have  so  often  watched  my  children  at  play,"  she  said. 
The  artist  still  demurred,  on  the  ground  that  the  park 
was  so  near  and  so  shut  in  that  it  was  impossible  to  get 
the  perspective  requisite  for  a  good  back-ground,  but  the 
children  and  the  General  were  delighted  with  Mrs.  Gar- 
field's  idea,  and  Miss  Ransom  yielded  to  their  united 
request,  and  the  portrait  was  finished  accordingly.  Gen- 
eral Garfield  was  greatly  pleased  with  the  result,  and 
would  not  let  the  portrait  be  taken  from  Washington  to 
the  artist's  studio  in  Cleveland,  where  she  proposed  to 
complete  it,  lest  something  might  befall  it  in  the  trans- 
portation. 

Of  the  mother  of  General  Garfield  much  was  said 
previous  to  the  inauguration,  and  has  been  since.  She 
is  the  first  mother  of  a  President  who  has  lived  in  the 
White  House,  and  by  reason  of  the  deference  and  dis- 
tinction her  son  showed  her  has  been  the  recipient 
of  exceptional  attentions.     No  one  who  ever  saw  her 


>■/  -■■"t»  .r«--i.»v,  fkOtU' 


".ii^lL^iiV  'MJkDLQ'U  QAW^l'E.lL'B . 


MOTHER    GARFIELD.  689 

in  his  company  but  felt  that  an  unusual  tie  bound  them. 
They  were  the  ideal  mother  and  son,  and  were  so  recog- 
nized years  before  he  had  grown  into  a  public  man. 
"You  never  see  General  Garfield  at  church  without  his 
wife  and  mother,"  was  the  remark  of  a  resident  of 
Washington  who  lived  near  the  Church  of  the  Disciples. 
"  He  goes  by  here  almost  every  Sunday  with  his  wife 
on  one  arm  and  his  mother  on  the  other." 

People  who  called  at  the  house  saw  the  bright  old 
lady,  who  was  "grandma"  to  so  many  children,  and 
knew  by  her  sunshiny  manner  that  she  was  an  honored 
member  of  the  family — not  a  mere  guest  or  an  inmate 
of  the  house.  She  was  "mother"  to  Mrs.  Garfield  as 
well  as  to  her  son,  and  the  two  women  loved  each  other 
because  their  hearts  were  centred  in  him. 

Many  incidents  are  related  of  her  sterling  worth  and 
integrity  of  character.  Few  women  of  to-day  have 
known  such  rugged  experiences  with  poverty  as  she 
had  for  long  years  after  she  lost  her  young  husband. 
She  must  have  been  possessed  of  intense  force  of  will, 
or  she  would  have  failed  in  the  work  she  accomplished. 
All  her  children  were  blessings  to  her,  and  honored  her 
absolutely.  She  lived  for  years  a  life  of  toil,  and  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  old  home  are  told  many  circum- 
stances creditable  to  her.  Her  eldest  son  was  a  little 
boy  when  his  father  died,  and  was  not  able  to  wield  an 
axe.  She  wanted  fences  made,  and  her  neighbors 
offered  to  do  the  job  for  her,  as  they  did  for  each  other. 
The  custom  was  a   common   one,  and  all   that  was   ex- 

44- 


690  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

peered  in  return  was  a  suppl)^  of  whiskey.  She  refused 
to  furnish  liquor  to  them — she  the  widow,  with  father- 
less boys  about  her,  watching  her  example  and  knowing 
no  other  guide.  She  wielded  her  maul  and  split  her 
own  rails,  without  subjecting  her  boys  to  temptation  or 
perilling  their  future  by  any  act  of  hers.  Widow  Garfield 
would  not  open  her  door  to  an  enemy  too  strong  for 
women  to  cope  with  in  strangers  and  the  bitterest  of  foes 
to  encounter  in  the  home  circle,  and  wisely  decided  to 
save  her  young  at  whatever  sacrifice.  If  people  occa- 
sionally wondered  at  the  depth  of  her  children's  love, 
and  the  jealous  care  they  bestowed  upon  her,  it  was 
because  she  had  earned  such  riches  for  herself  and  was 
wearing-  the  crown  that  was  of  her  own  makincr. 

The  scene  at  the  inauguration  of  her  son — when  he 
stood  in  the  presence  of  the  most  distinguished  men 
and  women  of  the  land,  and  saw  a  sea  of  human  beings 
before  him  such  as  no  man  could  count,  and  turning 
from  them  all  kissed  his  old  mother  first  and  then  his 
wife — will  never  be  forgotten.  The  people  could  talk  of 
nothing  else  then,  and  cannot  now  recall  the  event  with- 
out dv-,-elling  upon  it.  The  new  President  might  well 
have  overlooked  his  mother  at  such  a  time  and  been 
formal  w^ith  his  wife,  but  he  was  husband  and  son  first, 
and  the  young  men  who  witnessed  the  spectacle  were 
benefited  and  blessed  by  it. 

Such  filial  and  husbandly  devotion  won  President 
Garfield  the  respect  of  wives  and  mothers  throughout 
the  land — a  respect  which  kindled  into  affection  in  the 


THE    PRESIDENTS    FAMILY    IN    WASHINGTON.  69 1 

time  that  came,  A  speedy  illustration  of  the  effect  of  this 
act  was  given  by  a  young"  school-girl  who  had  been  an  eye- 
witness to  it,  and  whose  enthusiasm  was  checked  by  her 
companion.  "  It  was  done  for  effect,"  he  teazingly  re- 
marked, *'  It  was  done  because  he  is  a  knight — a  real 
Sir  Galahad!"  she  replied,  the  bright  eyes  sparkling, 
the  rosy  cheeks  flushing,  as  she  defended  her  hero. 
That  little  act  was  the  tie  that  bound  the  women  of  this 
country  to  those  two  women  as  nothing  else  could,  and 
it  was  an  assurance  of  a  happy  home  which  aroused 
generous  American  sentiment  for  the  new  White  House 
occupants. 

Mrs.  Garfield  was  eighty  years  of  age  when  her 
youngest  child  entered  upon  the  performance  of  the 
highest  office  in  his  country,  and  very  naturally  she 
was  the  object  of  much  sincere  interest.  When  the 
Presidential  party  reached  Washington,  she  was 
escorted  from  the  car  by  her  son  and  placed  in  the 
carriage  of  President  Hayes,  which  awaited  her  coming. 
She  was  driven  to  the  White  House  direct,  and  was 
there  to  welcome  her  son  and  daughter  when  they  came 
over  from  the  Riijcrs  House  in  the  eveninor  to  see  her. 
Her  heart  must  have  throbbed  with  thankfulness  and 
delight  that  night  as  she  looked  back  over  the  years 
that  lay  behind  her,  thought  of  the  husband  dead  for 
fifty  years,  and  dwelt  upon  the  career  of  her  boy,  who 
had  grown  up  by  her  side,  and  was  the  first  in  the  land 
and  ruler  of  a  nation. 

Incidents  of  her  early  life  are  rare,  and  from  a  rcla- 


692  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

tive,  an  aged  man,  who  knew  her  in  girlhood,  these  facts 
are  obtained : 

"  EHza  Ballon  and  a  sister,  about  1820,  by  the  death 
n{'  their  parents,  were  left  alone  in  the  world  and  unpro- 
vided for,  so  far  as  the  inheritance  or  possession  of 
property  was  concerned.  Preferring  to  live  among  rela- 
tives, one  went  to  reside  with  an  uncle  in  northern  Ohio, 
and  the  other,  Eliza,  came  to  another  uncle,  the  father 
of  Samuel  Arnold,  who  then  lived  on  a  farm  near  Nor- 
wich, Muskingum  county,  Ohio.  There  Eliza  Ballou 
made  her  home,  cheerfully  helping  at  the  house  or  in  the 
field,  as  was  then  sometimes  the  custom  in  a  pioneer 
country.  Having  something  more  than  what  at  that  day 
was  an  ordinary  education,  Eliza  procured  about  twenty 
pupils  and  taught  a  summer  school.  The  school-house 
was  one  of  the  most  primitive  kind,  and  stood  in  the 
edge  of  a  dense  and  heavily-timbered  woods.  One  day 
there  came  up  a  fearful  storm  of  wind  and  rain,  accom- 
panied by  thunder  and  lightning.  The  woods  were  badly 
wrecked,  but  the  wind  left  the  old  log  school-house  un- 
injured. Not  so  the  lightning.  A  bolt  struck  a  tree 
that  projected  closely  over  the  roof  and  then  the  roof 
of  the  building  itself  Some  of  the  pupils  were  greatl}' 
alarmed,  and  no  doubt  thoug-ht  it  the  crack  of  doom  or 
day  of  judgment.  The  teacher,  as  calm  and  collected  as 
possible,  tried  to  quiet  her  pupils  and  keep  them  in  their 
places.  A  man  who  was  one  of  the  pupils,  in  speaking 
of  the  occurrence,  says  that  for  a  littl  :  while  he  remem- 
bered nothinof,  and  then  he  looked  around  and  saw  tlic 


EARLY    LIFE    OF    MOTHER    GARFIELD.  693 

teacher  and  all  the  pupils  lying  dead  on  the  floor,  as  he 
thought.  Presently  the  teacher  began  to  move  a  litde. 
and  rose  to  her  feet.  Then,  one  by  one,  the  pupils  got 
up,  with  a  single  exception.  Help,  medical  and  other- 
wise, was  obtained  as  soon  as  possible  for  this  one,  and. 
thouirh  life  was  saved  for  a  time,  reason  had  forever 
fled.  This  was  a  fearful  experience  for  a  young  female 
teacher,  and  it  probably  ended  her  career  as  an 
instructress. 

"  Eliza  Ballou's  sister  married  in  northern  Ohio,  and 
while  on  a  visit  to  her  the  former  made  the  acquaintance 
of  Abram  Garfield,  and  subsequently  married  him. 
When  James  was  about  sixteen  years  old,  he  and  his 
widowed  mother  visited  Muskingum  county  in  search  of 
a  school  for  the  young  man.  They  visited  the  family  of 
the  elder  Arnold,  at  Norwich,  and  also  the  family  of 
Samuel  Arnold,  now  a  citizen  of  New  Lexington,  and 
before  referred  to.  The  unusual  intelligence  of  the  boy 
and  the  astonishing  affection  between  mother  and  son 
were  what  chiefly  impressed  itself  upon  the  minds  of 
those  who  entertained  the  poor  humble  boy  who  was  to 
become  a  future  President  of  the  United  States,  and  die; 
a  martyr  to  the  high  official  position,  more  widel\- 
lamented  than  any  other  man  had  ever  been.  There 
appeared  to  be  no  opening  for  a  school  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Norwich,  and  mother  and  son  went  to  Uncle 
Ballou's,  in  another  part  of  the  county,  where  James  got 
a  school  and  taucfht  a  single  term.  The  money  thus 
earned  he  applied  in  further  educating  himself.  And 
this  was  why  he  and  his  mother  were  hunting  a  school." 


694  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

Forty-five  years  later  the  proudest  day  of  that 
mother's  Hfe  had  come,  and  she  went  forth  to  meet 
it,  treading  Hghtly,  forgetting"  that  she  was  old, 
and  remembering  that  it  was  "her  baby"  who 
was  to  be  made  President  of  the  United  States. 
"  There  is  the  President's  mother,"  was  whispered 
among  the  throng,  as  a  small,  elderly  lady,  dressed 
in  black  silk,  -vyith  her  white  head  covered  with  a  close- 
fitting  bonnet,  stepped  into  the  Senate  gallery.  It  was 
the  woman  in  her  that  made  her  so  calm  and  composed 
as  she  looked  down  upon  the  scene  before  her ;  it  was 
the  mother  in  her  that  caused  her  withered  cheeks  to 
flush  and  the  tears  to  start  as  she  saw  her  son  come  upon 
the  floor,  surrounded  by  the  chief  officers  of  the  nation. 

She  was  the  first  to  receive  him  as  he  entered  the 
Executive  Mansion,  and  a  sweeter  picture  has  rarely 
been  seen  on  earth  than  this  little  mother  presented. as 
she  advanced,  with  a  proud  step  and  eyes  full  of  tears, 
to  greet  her  son.  What  mattered  it  to  her  if  the 
grandest  civil  and  military  procession  ever  seen  in 
Washino;ton  had  escorted  him  there  and  was  awaitin^^ 
his  presence  impatiently!  She  was  his  mother  by  right 
of  royal  reverence  as  by  ties  of  nature,  and  she  was  not 
disappointed  in  the  honor  paid  her.  She  could  walk 
under  his  outstretched  arm  thirty  years  before  without 
stooping ;  but  he  paid  her  the  same  deference  he  gave 
her  when  he  was  a  little  son  and  not  a  great  man — 
when  she  was  a  hard-toilinof  and  stronsf-armed  woman, 
and  not  the  mother  of  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  the 
country. 


MOTHER    AND    SON.  695 

Despite  her  fatigue  she  wanted  to  see  all  that  was 
clone  in  her  son's  honor,  and  when  the  party  left  the 
lunch-table  and  went  to  the  reviewing-stand  on  the 
avenue  in  front  of  the  Mansion,  Mother  Garfield  was  one 
of  the  number,  and  lor  a  long  while  sat  near  her  son 
enjoying  the  sight.  The  vast  multitude  that  Ijled  in 
front  of  that  stand  scarcely  had  time  to  note  the  pres- 
ence of  the  venerable  woman  before  them,  but  the  peo- 
ple about  her  watched  her  with  a  satisfaction  almost 
undefinable  to  themselves  and  never  to  be  forgotten 
now,  in  view  of  all  that  has  transpired. 

A  few  days  after  she  was  established  in  the  White 
House  she  wrote  a  letter  to  a  relative  in  the  West 
which,  as  here  ofiven,  does  not  show  the  handwritino- 
tremulous  with  age,  yet  exhibits  all  the  beautiful  spirit 
of  the  writer : 

"White  House,  March  7,  1881. 

"My  Dear  Cousin  : — 1  received  your  good  letter  and 
your  picture  also,  and  would  have  answered  sooner,  but 
waited  to  get  my  picture.  I  have  some,  and  will  send 
you  one,  though  they  are  not  good.  "  I  am  happy  to  tell 
you  that  we  are  all  pretty  well,  but  a  good  deal  tired 
out.  We  have  passed  through  the  greatest  rush  of 
people  for  the  last  six  months  that  I  ever  saw.  Since 
the  Inauguration  it  is  one  steady  stream  of  old  friends 
calling.  It  takes  pretty  much  all  of  the  time  to  enter- 
tain them  ;  they  want  to  see  the  President's  mother.  I 
am  the  first  mother  that  has  occupied  the  White  House 
and  her  son  President,  but  I  feel  very  thankful  for  such 


696  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

a  son.  1  don't  like  the  word  proud,  but  if  I  must  use  it 
I  think  in  this  case  it  is  quite  appropriate.  How  many 
times  my  mind  goes  back  to  our  girlhood  school-days  ! 
but  changes  take  place.  I  have  seen  sorrowful  days 
and  have  seen  happy  days.  1  was  once  young  and  am 
now  old,  but  I  have  never  seen  the  righteous  forsaken 
or  his  seed  begging  his  bread.  1  have  got  a  very 
pleasant  room,  nice  furnished,  and  waited  on  in  the 
very  best  manner  possible.  Now  I  want  you  to  write 
to  me.  Our  folks  all  send  love  to  you  ;  with  very  much 
love,  1  remain  your  aged  cousin, 

"  Eliza  Garlield." 

Notwithstanding  the  novelty  of  her  position,  the  first 
instance  of  the  kind  in  the  history  of  the  Presidents,  al- 
though her  son  was  not  the  first  President  whose  mother 
was  living  during  his  term  of  office,  she  was  at  once  es- 
tablished as  a  great  favorite,  and  her  short  stay  in  the 
White  House  was  as  happy  as  worldly  honors  and  hu- 
man affection  could  make  it.  When  the  summer  came 
she  longed  for  the 'country  and  old  friends  in  Ohio,  and 
accompanied  by  her  two  youngest  grandsons,  she  re- 
turned to  Mentor.  She  expected  her  son  to  visit  her 
during  the  summer,  and  to  return  with  her  daughter  in 
the  fall  to  the  White  House. 

No  more  imposing  ceremonies  were  ever  witnessed 
in  Washington,  or  in  this  country,  than  those  which 
attended  the  inauguration  of  President  James  A.  Gar- 
field.    Thousands  of  National  Guardsmen  and   scores 


INAUGURATION    SCENKS.  697 

of  civic  associations  were  in  the  procession,  which,  with 
the  exception  of  the  famous  review  in  1865,  was  the 
finest  pageant  the  country  has  yet  seen.  Twenty 
thousand  men  were  in  hne,  and  the  cortege  occupied 
two  hours  in  passing  the  review-stand.  From  the 
White  House  to  the  Capitol  there  was  a  mass  of  people, 
and  the  decorations  of  the  historic  avenue  were  profuse 
and  handsome.  The  snow  lay  on  the  parks  and  ter- 
races about  the  Capitol,  and  the  day  was  raw  and  dis- 
agreeable, though  the  sun  shone  at  noonday  and  dis- 
pelled the  sombre  clouds  that  hung  heavy  over  the 
city  after  the  storm  of  the  preceding  night  and  early 
morning. 

In  the  front  row  of  the  Senate  gallery  the  wife  and 
mother  of  General  Garfield  sat  beside  Mrs.  Hayes,  and 
with  them  were  the  only  daughters  of  the  incoming 
and  outgoing  Presidents.  The  galleries  were  very 
soon  crowded  with  a  brilliant  audience,  and  on  the 
rtoor  of  the  Senate  were  many  distinguished  men. 
General  Hancock,  the  Democratic  candidate  for  the 
Presidency,  was  among  the  number,  and  the  ovation 
tendered  him  was  second  only  to  that  bestowed  upon 
the  President  elect.  The  ceremony  of  introducing  his 
successor  was  performed  by  Vice-President  Wheeler  ; 
and  after  the  oath  of  oifihce  had  been  administered  to 
Vice-President  Arthur,  and  Mr.  Wheeler  had  said  his 
farewell  to  the  Senate,  the  assembly  adjourned  to  the 
eastern  portico  to  witness  the  taking  of  the  oath  of 
office  by  President  Garfield.    The  spectacle  was  a  grand 


69S  LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

one.  A  vast  multitude  of  people  gazed  upon  the  im- 
mense platform  upon  which  were  seated  General  Gar- 
field, with  Chief-Justice  Waite  on  his  right  and  Sergeant- 
at-Arms  Bright  on  his  left.  Immediately  back  of  the 
three,  who  were  directly  in  the  centre  of  the  platform, 
sat  President  Hayes,  Mrs.  Hayes  and  Mrs.  Garfield 
and  the  mother  of  General  Garfield.  Still  behind  them 
stood  Mollie  Garfield  and  Fanny  Hayes,  and  to  their 
right  sat  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
Mr.  Randall.  The  (jentlemen  sat  with  their  heads  un- 
covered.  The  Chief-Justice  rose  from  his  seat,  and  In- 
standy  the  noise  and  din  died  away,  and  the  oath  of 
office  was  administered.  Then  followed  the  inaugural 
address,  after  which  Mr.  Hayes  shook  hands  with  th-^ 
new  President,  as  did  the  Chief-Justice.  Turning  from 
them,  President  Garfield  tenderly  kissed  his  mother  and 
then  his  wife.  This  being  the  first  incident  of  its  kind, 
the  people  noted  it  with  great  gratification,  and  the 
thronof  rent  the  air  with  huzzas,  while  the  President 
received  the  congratulations  of  those  about  him  as  he 
slowly  made  his  way  back  to  the  head  of  the  proces- 
sion. The  ladies  of  the  party  returned  first,  and  were 
at  the  White  House  before  the  procession  got  under 
way  from  the  Capitol,  The  President's  carriage  was 
drawn  by  four  horses,  and  the  escort  w^ere  the  Cleve- 
land troops,  in  showy  uniforms.  General  Sherman  rode 
at  the  head  of  the  procession.  The  feviewing-stand  in 
front  of  the  White  House  was  occupied  by  a  distin- 
guished   company,    which    awaited    the   coming   of  the 


THE    INAUGURATION    BALL.  699 

Presidential  party  from  the  White  House,  whither  they 
had  gone  to  lunch.  At  half-past  two  the  President  and 
ex-President  walked  down  to  the  stand,  followed  by 
their  families  and  the  entire  White  House  party.  The 
President  stood  with  his  wife  and  his  mother  on  his 
right,  and  ex-President  and  Mrs,  Hayes  on  his  left,  with 
General  Hancock  immediately  behind  and  above  him, 
and  surrounded  by  the  members  of  the  Cabinet,  Sena- 
tors, Congressmen  and  a  numerous  company  of  ladies. 

President  Hayes  and  his  family  became  the  guests  of 
Secretary  and  Mrs.  Sherman,  and  after  the  procession 
had  passed  they  returned  to  the  door  of  the  Mansion, 
took  leave  of  the  President  and  Mrs.  Garfield,  and  widi 
their  son,  who  welcomed  Mrs.  Garfield  as  she  crossed 
the  threshold,  w^ere  driven  aw^ay. 

The  city  was  brilliantly  illuminated  at  night,  and  the 
inauguration  ball  in  the  Museum  Building  was  attended 
by  nearly  every  person  of  distinction  in  Washington. 
Mrs.  Garfield  was  arrayed  in  a  magnificent  dress  of  lav- 
ender satin,  with  trimmings  of  point  lace  and  a  corsage 
bouquet  of  pansies.  Mrs.  Hayes  wore  a  white  satin  de 
Lyons  trimmed  with  pearl  passementeries.  Both  cos' 
tumes  were  elegant  and  were  worn  without  jewels.  In 
a  ball-room  thronged  with  ladies  whose  superb  diamonds 
were  resplendent  and  glittered  with  reflected  light,  their 
simplicity  was  all  the  more  charming. 

The  National  Museum  is  a  buildinc:  desiq;ned  in  the 
form  of  a  Greek  cross,  the  arms  diverging  from  a  cen- 
tral octagonal,  surmounted  by  a  dome,  and  the  tempo- 


700  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

rary  decorations  were  magnificent,  consisting  of  statues, 
tropical  plants,  flowers  and  the  national  colors,  draped 
with  evergreen,  and  coats-of-arms.  The  President  and 
Mrs.  Garfield  received  on  a  raised  dais.  The  gallery 
above  them  was  for  the  use  of  Mrs.  Garfield  and  Mrs. 
Hayes  and  their  invited  guests.  Another  was  occupied 
by  General  Hancock,  who  was  the  guest  of  the  commit- 
tee, surrounded  by  a  distinguished  party  of  military  offi- 
cers. The  scene,  viewed  from  the  balcony  near  the  ro- 
tunda, had  the  appearance  of  a  series  of  halls,  separated 
by  arches,  and  affording  an  extended  and  varied  vista. 
The  view  was  enchanting  and  bewildering.  The  picture 
was  a  never-to-be-forgotten  one.  With  all  the  adjuncts 
of  famous  people,  gorgeous  in  apparel  and  surrounded 
by  music  and  flowers,  the  ball-room  is  remembered  as  a 
fairy  place  and  recalled  as  a  bright  dream. 

Succeeding  the  inauguration  were  days  of  bustle 
and  excitement  for  the  new  inmates  of  the  White  House. 
They  had  many  friends  in  the  city  where  they  had  lived 
so  long  and  entertained  so  hospitably,  and  all  were  anx- 
ious to  see  them.  So  likewise  were  the  hundreds  of 
strangers  who  had  visited  the  Capitol  to  witness  the  in- 
augural ceremonies,  and  the  Saturday  evening  following 
the  event  the  President  and  Mrs.  Garfield  received.  In 
the  matter  of  dress  Mrs.  Garfield  came  up  to  the  re- 
quirements of  her  position.  At  this  reception  she  wore 
a  rich  ruby  velvet,  made  in  princess  style,  the  facings  of 
the  long  bow  and  loops  that  fastened  the  fullness  at  the 
back  being  of  Sultan  red  satin.     The  open  neck  and  the 


THE    LADIES    OF    THE    CABINET.  70I 

half-long  sleeves  were  ornamented  with  elegant  lace. 
Her  hair  was  simply  arranged  after  the  prevailing  style, 
and  she  wore  no  jewels. 

Several  afternoon  receptions  were  held  during  the 
spring,  and  many  invited  guests  were  informally  enter- 
tained, but  there  was  no  opportunity  for  social  gayeties, 
and  the  anticipations  were  all  the  brighter  for  the  coming 
winter.  The  ladies  of  the  Cabinet  numbered  several 
long  accustomed  to  official  life  in  Washington,  and  it  was 
anticipated  that  the  receptions  and  State  dinners  the  com- 
ing winter  would  be  rendered  brilliant  by  the  circle  imme- 
diately about  the  President.  Mrs,  Blaine,  Mrs.  Mac- 
Veagh,  Mrs.  James,  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and  in  fact  all,  were 
well  known  in  Washington  society,  and  were  united  in 
their  desire  to  make  the  Administration,  socially,  as  suc- 
cessful as  it  promised  to  be  officially. 

The  spring  wore  away,  and  the  summer  came,  bring- 
ing with  it  the  two  elder  sons  of  the  President,  who  had 
been  away  at  school. 

The  five  children  of  the  President  and  Mrs.  Garfield 
attracted  much  attention  while  in  the  Wliite  House,  par- 
ticularly the  two  eldest  boys,  Harry  and  James,  just 
developing  into  manhood,  and  Mollie,  the  only  daughter. 
Two  younger  lads,  Irwin  and  Abram,  were  less  before 
the  public  than  the  elder  children,  and  were  in  Wash- 
ington but  a  short  time,  having  returned  to  Ohio  in  the 
early  summer.  The  elder  boys  were  at  their  studies, 
and  the  daughter  was  too  young  to  participate  in  the 
few  public  receptions  given  by  the  President. 


702  I.UCKETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

The  family  were  all  together  for  a  time  in  the 
spring,  and  this  description  of  a  dining-room  scene  is 
given  by  a  Washington  correspondent : 

"In  the  cosy  family  dining-room   the  President's  seat 
is  midway  the  length  of  the  table  on  its  west  side,  and 
Mrs.  Garfield  sits  opposite,  with   Harry,  her  eldest,  a 
decided  *  mother  boy,'  as  near  her  as  the  presence  of 
almost   constant   guests  will    permit,  while  Jimmie  sits 
correspondingly  near  his  father,  where  also  '  Grandma  ' 
Garfield  has  an  honored  place.     She  is  always  waited  on 
first,  whoever  else  may  be  present.     Mollie  sits  at  the 
north  end  of  the  table,  and  the  two  younger  boys  are 
disposed  a  little  promiscuously,  according  to  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  case.     Harry  is  eighteen,  tall  and  graceful, 
with  the  regular  features  of  his  mother.     The  down  of 
manhood  appears  on  his  cheeks.     Jimmie,  sixteen  years 
old,  is  nearly  or  quite  as  tall  as  his  brother  and  broader 
shouldered,  with  the  Saxon  hair  and  large  features  of  his 
father,  whom  he  bids  fair  to  resemble  strongly  in  person 
and    intellect.     Mollie,    aged    fourteen,    has    the    dark- 
brown  hair  of  her  mother  and   the   lineaments   of  her 
father  not  unhandsomely  reproduced.     When  woman- 
hood has  softened  the  charm  of  her  face  she  will  be 
very  fine-looking.     She  is  a  great  pet  with  her  father. 
Irwin,  aged  eleven,  and  Abram,  aged  nine,  you  already 
know  through  descriptions,  especially  the  former,  who  is 
the  eccentric  one,  possibly  the  genius  of  them  all.     He 
is  named  for  General   McDowell,  and   insists   that  his 
name  must  be  always  written,  not  Irwin   M.,  but  Irwin 


THE  CHILDREN  OF  THE  PRESHDEXT.        703 

McD.  Meal-time  is  almost  the  only  time  the  President 
has  lately  had  with  his  children,  and  he  devotes  himself 
in  great  part  to  them  at  that  time,  after  asking  questions 
on  some  interesting  point  of  Marry  or  James  or  Mollie 
to  draw  them  out,  and  then  explaining  it  at  considerable 
length,  instructing  by  the  Socratic  method  as  it  were." 

The  eldest  and  the  youngest  of  the  household  are  dead  ; 
the  latter,  an  infant  son,  havincr  died  in  Washinorton  four 
years  before  the  President's  election.  It  is  related  of 
General  Garfield  that  he  suffered  intense  erief  at  the 
loss  of  his  children,  and  his  friends  frequently  during  his 
last  months  of  life  recalled  the  sorrow  he  manifested  at 
the  time  of  his  little  child's  death  in  Washinirton. 

In  June  the  public  was  starded  with  the  news  of  Mrs. 
Garfield's  illness,  and  it  was  with  great  concern  that  the 
announcements  from  the  sick-room  were  learned.  The 
President  gave  up  all  public  matters,  and  for  days 
watched  over  her,  giving  her  the  medicines  prescribed 
and  remaining  at  her  bedside  day  and  night.  Happily, 
her  life  was  saved,  and  so  soon  as  she  could  be  conveyed 
from  Washington,  she  was  taken  to  Long  Branch,  where 
it  was  hoped  the  sea  air  would  restore  her.  She  was  so 
weak  when  she  got  there  that  she  had  to  be  carried  to 
her  room,  and  was  but  beginning  to  grow  strong  when  the 
President  left  her  and  returned  to  Washington,  prepara- 
tory to  making  a  trip  to  New  England  and  the  White 
Mountains.  He  was  daily  cheered  by  the  news  of  his 
wife's  steady  improvement,  and  was  anticipating  a  happy 
visit  to  Williams  College,  his  Alma  JMater.     The  party 


704  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

were  to  leave  Washington  on  the  second  of  July,  and  be 
joined  by  Mrs.  Garfield  and  her  friends  at  New  York. 
The  trip  was  all  arranged,  and  the  morning  of  the 
eventful  day  came.  Mrs.  Garfield  at  Long  Branch  was 
anticipating  a  reunion  with  her  husband,  and  was  making- 
final  preparations  to  start  from  the  hotel  to  the  train 
when  the  news  that  startled  the  nation  reached  there 
and  was  in  part  tenderly  broken  to  her.  She  was  taken 
from  Washington,  at  a  leisurely  gait,  a  helpless  invalid, 
but  the  telegram  that  shocked  her  that  July  morning 
sent  her  back  at  the  rate  of  fifty  miles  an  hour.  Even 
that  seemed  slow  to  the  anxious  wife  and  the  suffer- 
ing husband.  The  event  was  the  never-to-be-forgotten, 
never-to-be-forgiven  tragedy  of  the  shooting  of  President 
Garfield,  the  particulars  of  which  are  briefly  told  here. 

On  the  morning  of  Saturday,  July  2d,  when  it  was 
supposed  that  the  President  was  on  his  way  from  Wash- 
ington to  New  York,  accompanied  by  all  his  Cabinet, 
their  wives  and  several  friends,  this  news  was  flashed 
over  the  wires :  "  President  Garfield  was  shot  before 
leaving  on  the  limited  express  train  this  morning !  " 

The  brief  announcement,  made  in  two  lines,  that  the 
President  of  the  United  States  had  been  shot  by  an  as- 
sassin, excited  great  incredulity,  then  amazement,  and 
finally  a  feeling  of  horror  that  rendered  suspense  almost 
intolerable.  The  second  despatch  followed  speedily, 
and  it  conveyed  the  intelligence  that  Colonel  Corbin  had 
returned  to  the  President  with  a  physician.  This  was 
meagre  enough,  and  the  third  was  waited  with  intense 


INCIDENTS    OF    THE    ASSASSINATION.  705 

excitement.  It  said  :  "  President  Garfield  was  shot  this 
morning  at  the  Baltimore  and  Potomac  depot  by  an  as- 
sassin. It  is  reported  that  he  is  mortally  wounded. 
The  assassin  was  caucrht." 

o 

The  fourth  despatch,  dated  half  an  hour  later,  was  to 
the  effect  that  Dr.  Bliss  had  said  that  the  President's 
wound  was  not  a  mortal  one,  and  that  concerning  the 
assassin  nothing  was  known  except  that  he  was  under 
arrest.  A  subsequent  message  announced  that  the 
physicians  attending  the  President  were  holding  a  con- 
sultation.    Soon  came  the  particulars  of  the  shooting: 

The  President  and  Mr.  Blaine  rode  from  the  White 
House  to  the  depot  in  the  Secretary's  carriage.  Reach- 
ing the  entrance  on  B  street,  the  President  and  the 
Secretary  left  it  and  entered  the  ladies'  waiting-room,, 
walking  arm-in-arm.  Just  at  the  moment  that  they 
were  passing  through  the  door  into  the  main  room, 
two  shots  were  fired.  Mr.  Blaine  saw  a  man  run 
throuofh  the  room  at  that  instant,  and  started  toward 
him,  but  turninof  to  the  President  and  seeino^  that 
he  had  fallen  he  sprang  to  his  side,  as  did  several 
others,  and  raised  his  head  from  the  floor.  One  shot 
passed  through  the  arm,  and  the  other  took  effect  in  the 
lower  part  of  the  back.  There  were  few  people  in  the 
room  when  the  shots  were  fired.  The  members  of  the 
President's  party  were  on  the  platform  beyond  the  wait- 
ing-room, or  in  the  car  that  was  ready  to  start  the 
moment  the  President  was  aboard.    Secretaries  Windom 

and   Hunt  were   promenading   on    the    platform,    Post- 
45 


706  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

master-General  James  stood  at  the  side  of  the  car  In 
which  were  seated  the  ladies  of  the  party.  They  were 
all  chatting  as  they  watched  for  the  coming  of  the 
President.  Colonel  Jamison,  of  the  Post-office  Depart- 
ment, ran  out  of  the  depot  immediately  after  the  shots 
were  fired  and  exclaimed,  "The  President  is  shot!"  One 
of  the  party  made  a  doubting  reply,  but  when  their  in- 
formant answered  "  I  saw  it,"  they  rushed  back  and 
found  the  President  on  the  floor,  his  head  supported  by 
Mrs.  White,  the  woman  in  charge  of  the  waiting-room, 
who  had  witnessed  the  shooting.  The  entire  party 
hastily  quitted  the  car  and  followed  them  to  the  scene, 
and  a  large  crowd  gathered  about  the  prostrate  form. 
Shortly  after  a  mattress  was  brought  in  and  the  President 
was  removed  to  the  upper  floor  of  the  depot.  Within 
an  hour  an  ambulance  had  arrived  and  the  President, 
who  had  grown  very  weak,  was  removed  to  it  and  con- 
veyed to  the  White  House.  The  news  spread  like  wild- 
fire, and  those  who  at  first  doubted  the  report  became 
convinced  that  something  had  happened  by  the  rapid 
driving  of  a  carriage  through  Pennsylvania  avenue, 
clearing  the  way  for  the  ambulance  which  followed 
driven  at  a  rapid  pace,  and  surrounded  by  mounted  po- 
lice. An  excited  throne  followed.  The  President  bore 
the  removal  with  great  fortitude,  and  in  fact,  after  the  first 
paroxysm  of  pain  and  falntness  had  passed,  he  seemed 
not  again  to  lose  his  self-control.  His  first  thought 
after  the  shock  of  the  shooting  had  passed  was  of  his 
wife,  and  from  speaking  reassuringly  to  his  son  James, 


REMOVAL    TO    THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  707 

who  was  beside  him,  he  dictated  to  Colonel  Ro'ckwell 
this  despatch  to  her : 

"  The  President  wishes  me  to  say  to  you  from  him 
that  he  has  been  seriously  hurt.  How  seriously  he  can- 
not yet  say.  He  is  himself,  and  hopes  you  will  come  to 
him  soon.     He  sends  his  love  to  you." 

The  ladies  of  the  party  hurried  to  the  White  House  to 
make  preparations  for  the  reception  of  the  President,  and 
when  the  sad  procession  reached  the  Mansion,  everything 
was  in  readiness  for  him.  As  he  was  lifted  from  the  am- 
bulance he  saw  some  familiar  faces  at  the  windows,  and 
with  a  smile,  which  those  who  saw  it  will  never  forget, 
he  raised  his  right  hand  and  gave  the  military  salute. 
His  face  was  ghastly  white,  and  it  was  thought  that  his 
moments  were  numbered.  He  was  carried  into  the 
"  southwest  chamber,"  that  he  had  recently  occupied  as 
a  sleeping  room,  and  was' soon  surrounded  by  the  physi- 
cians. The  events  that  transpired  in  that  room  during 
the  day  were  made  known  throughout  the  land,  and 
are  familiar  to  all  readers  of  the  newspapers. 

It  is  not  needful  in  a  sketch  of  Mrs.  Garfield  to  recite 
the  painful  history  of  the  creature  who  shot  the  Presi- 
dent, or  to  give  any  of  the  particulars  of  his  case.  His 
name  is  execrated  wherever  it  is  heard,  and  the  world 
would  be  glad  to  bury  it  in  eternal  oblivion.  The  only 
emotion  of  a  human  kind  exhibited  by  him  was  his 
hesitation  to  shoot  the  President  when  he  went  to  Long 
Branch  with  Mrs.  Garfield.  In  his  confession  he  stated 
that  he  was  at  the  depot  for  that  purpose,  but  noticing 


708  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

that  Mrs.  Garfield  was  pale  and  ill,  and  clung  tenderly 
to  her  husband's  arm,  he  decided  not  to  take  his  life 
then. 

It  was  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening  when  the  train 
dashed  at  express  speed  into  Washington.  Shortly  after- 
ward the  President  heard  the  wheels  of  a  carriaofe  on  the 
drive,  and  speaking  to  Mrs.  James,  who  sat  beside  him, 
said,  "That  is  my  wife."  Alighting  from  the  carriage  she 
was  accompanied  up  the  stairs  by  her  son  James  and  At- 
torney-General MacVeagh.  She  hurried  to  the  bedside 
of  the  President,  and  greeted  him  with  a  cheerful  smile. 
Her  self-control  and  quiet  demeanor  were  noted  by  the 
doctors,  who  returned  to  the  room  and  terminated  the  in- 
terview for  the  time  beino-.  She  was  escorted  out  of  her 
husband's  presence,  and  then  broke  down,  weeping 
piteously.  Shortly  afterward  she  returned  to  the  bed- 
side and  had  a  second  private  interview  with  him. 
From  that  time  he  manifested  favorable  symptoms  and 
hope  was  revived.  Later  in  the  evening,  as  Mrs.  James 
sat  beside  him  watching  him  as  he  slept,  he  suddenly 
awoke,  and  said  to  her :  "  Do  you  know  where  Mrs.  Gar- 
field is  now  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,"  Mrs.  James  answered ;  "  she  is  close  by, 
watching  and  praying  for  her  husband." 

He  looked  up  to  the  lady  with  an  anxious  face,  and 
said,  "  I  want  her  to  go  to  bed.  Will  you  tell  her  that  I 
say  if  she  will  undress  and  go  to  bed,  I  will  turn  right 
over,  and  I  feel  sure  that  when  I  know  she  is  in  bed,  I 
can  go  to  sleep  and  sleep  all  night?  Tell  her  that  I 
will  sleep  all  night  if  she  will  only  do  what  I  ask," 


HEROIC    SUFFERING.  709 

Mrs.  James  went  immediately  with  the  message  to 
Mrs.  Garfield,  who  quickly  replied:  "Go  back  and  tell 
him  that  I  am  undressing,"  She  returned  with  the  an- 
swer, and  the  President  turned  over  on  his  riMit  side 
and  dropped  asleep  almost  instantly. 

Throughout  the  night  he  was  cheerful,  and  to  Dr. 
Bliss,  who,  in  replying  to  his  question  as  to  his  condi- 
tion, had  told  him  that  there  was  a  chance  of  recovery, 
said  hopefully,  "  We  will  take  that  chance." 

The  people,  impressed  with  this  remark  and  the  cheer- 
fulness it  indicated,  renewed  the  hope  which  had  well 
nigh  been  extinguished  by  the  repeated  assurances  of 
the  physicians  that  he  could  not  live  through  the  night. 
The  Fourth  of  July,  the  saddest  ever  known  in  this 
country,  passed;  the  news  from  the  bedside  of  the 
nation's  patient  was  less  cheering,  and  the  gloomy  tide 
of  a  orreat  sorrow  ran  a  strono;  current  under  the  or- 
dinary  occupations  and  duties  of  every-day  life.  No 
gathering  of  people  was  possible  where  it  was  not  the 
dominant  subject,  and  it  took  weeks  of  weary  anxiety 
to  quell  the  spirit  of  revenge  that  was  universal  in  the 
hearts  of  men  against  the  wasp  that  had  stung  the  Pres- 
ident and  had  poisoned  his  life-blood.  The  sympathy 
of  other  countries  soothed  this  feelinor  in  time,  and  the 
demeanor  of  the  President  was  such  an  example  to  the 
country  that  it  was  impossible  to  express  hostile  feelings 
with  such  a  pattern  of  submission  before  them.  Great 
as  had  been  President  Garfield's  services  in  the  past. 
his    heroic   bearinof   in    affliction   was    of    more    value 


7IO  LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

to  the  people,  and  his  influence  did  more  to  bring 
about  harmony  of  feehng,  brotherly  love  and  the  oblit- 
eration of  party  bitterness  than  any  work  he  had  done 
in  his  days  of  health  and  activity. 

As  he  lay  on  his  bed  of  sickness,  he  thought  of  his 
mother,  whose  absence  from  him  troubled  him.  He 
hoped  at  first  to  go  to  her  soon  and  to  recuperate 
his  strength  at  Mentor,  but  while  waiting  for  the 
streneth  that  never  came  he  wrote  her  this  letter: 

Washington,  D.  C,  August  wth,  1881. 

Dear  Mother: — Don't  be  disturbed  by  conflicting 
reports  about  my  condition.  It  is  true  I  am  still  weak 
and  on  my  back,  but  I  am  gaining  every  day,  and  need 
only  time  and  patience  to  bring  me  through. 

Give  my  love  to  all  the  relatives  and  friends  and  es- 
pecially to  sisters  Hetty  and  Mary.     Your  loving  son, 

James  A.  Garfield. 

Mrs.  Eliza  Garkield,  Hiram,  Ohio. 

Telegrams  of  sympathy  reached  his  bedside  from  all 
parts  of  the  earth,  and  wherever  the  news  had  gone  in 
other  lands  there  came  back  gratifying  evidences  of 
world-wide  sorrow. 

As  the  days  passed  the  alternations  of  hope  and 
despair  kept  the  feeling  of  the  people  at  its  highest 
tension,  and  during  this  time  of  anxious  waiting,  Mrs. 
Garfield  was  the  recipient  of  countless  messages,  letters 
and  assurances  of  every  kind  of  the  sentiment  of  her 
countrymen  and  women.  She  appreciated  all  that  was 
felt  and  said ;  and  on  one  occasion,  when  some  unusual 


NOT   A    POLITICIAN.  7  I  I 

incident  had  received  her  attention,  she  said  in  a  voice 
broken  with  emotion  and  with  tears  in  her  eyes  :  "  If  it 
were  possible  for  my  husband  and  me  to  go  around  and 
see  all  those  dear  people  who  have  been  so  grateful  in 
their  remembrance  for  us  here  of  late  days,  I  would  be 
so  happy ;  and  I  know  he  would,  too.  I  want  to  thank 
them — to  tell  them  all  how  kindly  I  feel  toward  them 
for  what  they  have  said  to  me.  I  never  could  under- 
stand anything  about  politics,  and  if  I  liked  a  person  it 
made  no  difference  whether  they  were  Republicans  or 
Democrats ;  and  now  I  have  grown  to  think  that  there 
is  not  much  difference  between  the  tw^o  great  parties, 
for  one  says  just  as  kind  words  in  our  present  affliction 
as  the  other.  It  makes  me  feel  like  forming  an  opinion 
as  to  what  I  would  do  were  women  permitted  to  vote 
as  well  as  men.  I  believe  I  would  get  two  tickets,  fold 
them  together  so  as  to  look  like  one,  and  drop  both  in 
the  ballot-box." 

The  love  and  respect  for  her  womanly  attributes  and 
fine  self-government  increased  as  time  passed;  and  it  was 
evident  that  her  conduct  under  the  most  trying  circum- 
stances that  could  come  to  a  woman  had  aroused  the 
enthusiasm  of  the  entire  country.  From  the  various 
organizations,  without  respect  to  their  nature  or  object, 
were  received  at  the  White  House  kind  wishes  for  the 
President  and  earnest  assurances  to  him  that  his  family 
was  not  forgotten  in  his  time  of  helplessness  and  suf- 
fering. The  practical  spirit  of  the  people  was  aroused, 
and  the  question  was  repeatedly  asked :  "  What  can  we 


712  LUCKETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

do  to  make  it  easier  for  the  President?"  Presents  of 
all  descriptions,  from  the  rich  and  the  poor,  the  great 
and  the  humble,  patriarchs  and  little  children,  were  sent 
to  the  White  House  in  great  numbers.  Everybody 
wanted  to  do  something,  and  it  was  painful  that  so  little 
could  be  offered  that  would  be  of  use.  Sick-room  appli- 
ances reached  the  physicians  in  such  quantities  that  the 
basement  of  the  mansion  was  crowded,  and  the  slightest 
intimation  of  a  chanQ^e  in  the  nourishment  or  treatment 
of  the  distinguished  sufferer  sent  numberless  articles 
for  trial.  That  he  might  have  the  richest  Alderney 
milk,  an  eager  owner  of  an  imported  cow  quickly  for- 
v/arded  the  animal,  and  he  was  repaid  many  times  over 
with  the  knowledge  that  the  patient  saw  from  the  window 
the  fine  creature  that  had  been  sent  to  minister  to  his 
comfort,  and  spoke  of  it.  Little  children  sent  their 
tributes,  and  the  gift  of  a  pet  squirrel  from  two  little 
people  who  had  learned  that  the  President  had  ex- 
pressed a  desire  for  such  food,  brought  tears  to  the  eyes 
of  all  who  knew  of  the  circumstance.  The  tender,  con- 
stant and  ever  deepening  feeling  of  the  people  for  their 
sick  President  must  have  helped  him  immeasurably,  for 
he  was  borne  up  and  cheered  daily  by  the  affection  that 
went  out  from  all  human  hearts  toward  him.  It  seemed 
to  the  people  that  he  must  get  well,  that  the  prayers  of 
a  nation  would  be  answered ;  that  the  assassin's  work 
would  fail ;  that  love  would  conquer  death,  and 
that  into  the  weary  pain-worn  body  of  the  sufferer 
would    be    renewed    the    strono-    life-currents.      Who 


THE     RELAPSE.  7  I  3 

can  ever  forget,  though  long  years  may  dim  other 
memories,  the  daily  and  nightly  watch  over  that 
sick-chamber!  When  the  relapse  came  weeks  after 
the  crisis  was  thought  to  be  passed,  the  excitement 
and  interest  grew  terrible  in  its  intensity.  Those  who 
had  the  dissemination  of  the  news  aeed  under  it  as 
the  bulletins  that  came  from  their  hands  banished  hope. 
The  day  of  saddest  gloom,  Saturday,  August  27,  was 
given  up  to  prayer,  and  when  Sunday  came,  and  word 
went  forth  that  the  President  was  better,  the  people  called 
it  resurrection,  and  said  in  their  joy  that  God  had  given 
back  to  them  in  answer  to  their  petitions  him  who  was 
thouorht  to  be  dead. 

Through  it  all  stood  Mrs.  Garfield,  eager  and  watchful, 
but  steady  and  strong  in  heart.  When  the  doctors  told 
her  of  their  fears  she  did  not  sink  down  or  show  dismay. 
She  bade  them  do  their  best,  and  never  to  give  up,  and 
leaving  them  she  went  back  with  a  cheerful  face  to  her 
husband  and  resumed  her  place  at  his  bedside.  Too  weak 
and  weary  to  give  thought  to  others,  the  heroic  sufferer 
watched  her  face  and  was  understood  by  her  when  to 
others  his  wishes  were  unintelligible.  If  he  held  on  to 
life  with  a  tenacity  that  surprised  every  one,  his  strength 
in  large  measure  was  drawn  from  her.  She  was  more 
to  him  than  all  else,  and  she  furnished  the  strongest 
motive  he  felt  for  his  recovery.  The  thought  that  was 
agitating  many  minds,  that  he  be  given  assurance  that 
his  family  would  be  taken  care  of  in  case  he  died,  was 
voiced  by  Mr.  Cyrus  W.  Field,  of  New  York,  who  pro- 


714  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

posed  that  a  fund  of  ^250,000  be  raised  for  Mrs.  GarfielJ 
and  her  children,  and  settled  upon  her.  He  started  the 
fund  with  a  large  subscription,  and  the  amount  subscribed 
before  and  after  the  death  of  the  President  reached 
nearly  ^350,000.  Though  no  public  acknowledgment 
was  made  of  the  gift,  it  is  a  fact  that  the  President's 
mind  was  greatly  relieved  by  this  considerate  act,  and 
his  last  days  were  not  troubled  with  dread  of  the 
future  for  his  wife  and  children.  When  the  sultry  Au- 
gust clays  had  tried  his  strength  beyond  endurance,  and 
it  was  apparent  that  a  removal  from  the  malarial 
atmosphere  of  the  capital  was  imperative,  the  jour- 
ney to  Long  Branch  was  undertaken.  Many  plans 
had  been  suggested  and  the  practicability  of  all 
considered;  but  Mrs.  Garfield,  who  knew  of  her  hus- 
band's love  for  the  sea,  and  of  the  benefit  that  she 
had  derived  from  her  stay  there,  insisted  upon  this 
trip.  The  journey  was  undertaken  after  careful 
preparation,  and  the  details  of  the  trip  from  Washing- 
ton to  Elberon  were  read  with  thrilling  interest  at  the 
time.  At  every  station  and  wayside  crossing  the  peo- 
ple gathered,  and  stood  with  uncovered  heads  as  the 
train  with  its  precious  freight  passed  by.  The  sym- 
pathy with  which  every  heart  was  overflowing  was  deep 
but  voiceless;  all  felt  the  need  the  sufferer  had  of  silence 
and  repose.  Bulletins  were  thrown  off  the  cars  at  dif- 
ferent points,  and  it  was  with  unspeakable  relief  that  the 
arrival  at  the  Francklyn  Cottage  was  announced.  For 
days  before,  workmen  had  been  busy  preparing  a  road- 


A    LITTLE    boy's    SYMPATHY.  715 

bed  for  a  track  from  the  Elberon  station  to  the  cottage, 
and  four  hundred  men  spent  the  night  before  his  arri- 
val in  laying  the  track.  In  this  work  the  hundreds  of 
ouests  at  the  various  hotels  and  cottacjes  of  Lonor  Branch 
took  great  interest,  an  interest  touchingly  expressed  in 
the  request  of  a  little  boy,  who  with  his.  father  was 
watching  the  progress  of  the  workmen.  He  desired 
to  do  something  for  the  President,  and  leaving  his 
father's  side  he  approached  a  man  who  was  driving 
a  pile  and  asked  to  be  permitted  to  help.  The  man 
carelessly  said  to  him  that  he  was  too  small,  and  could 
not  lift  the  maul.  "Let  me  try,"  he  urged;  the 
heavy  weight  was  given  him,  and  with  the  workman's 
assistance  the  pile  was  put  down  in  place.  The  task 
completed,  the  child  returned  with  a  radiant  face,  saying, 
"There,  papa,  I  have  done  something  for  the  President." 
Happy  child,  to  have  relieved  his  feelings  by  striking  a 
blow  in  the  service  of  the  sufferer!  How  many  thou- 
sands upon  thousands  of  people  would  have  accom- 
plished herculean  tasks,  if  by  so  doing  they  could  have 
been  of  service  to  the  President !  Mr.  Francklyn,  whose 
beautiful  summer  home  was  tendered  Mrs.  Garfield,  and 
accepted,  was  kindly  envied  by  the  public  whose  houses 
would  gladly  have  been  given  up  for  a  like  purpose. 

The  room  into  which  the  President  was  taken  was 
Mrs.  Francklyn's  own  boudoir,  on  the  southeast  cor- 
ner of  the  second  story,  overlooking  the  sea ;  and  his 
pleasure  in  beholding  the  broad  Adantic  from  his  bed 
gave  hope  that  he  would  get  well.     It  was  expected  that 


71  6  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

he  would  revive  rapidly  under  the  combined  influences 
of  a  cooler  atmosphere,  the  sight  of  the  sea,  and  the 
change  of  scene.  That  he  did  not  mend  rapidly 
troubled  the  people,  and  they  murmured.  Then  remem- 
bering Mrs.  Garfield's  remark,  made  in  reply  to  the 
physician  who  told  her  at  the  time  of  the  relapse  in 
Washington  that  only  a  miracle  could  save  her  husband 
— "Then  that  miracle  will  be  performed:  he  will  live" — 
they  redoubled  their  earnestness  in  prayer,  and  believed 
that  the  bitter  cup  would  be  taken  from  unwilling  lips. 

The  gloom  of  the  September  days  deepened  and  the 
reluctant  warning  was  sent  out — "  Hope  no  more,  hope  is 
dead."  Still  the  people  hoped,  relying  upon  the  faith  of 
Mrs.  Garfield,  the  wonderful  vitality  and  heroic  demeanor 
of  the  invalid.  They  believed  in  the  impossible,  and 
prayed  yet  more  fervently.  Never  in  the  world's  history 
was  any  one  so  universally  prayed  for.  It  seemed  like 
doubting  God's  goodness  to  despair  of  the  President's 
life.  Still  the  same  anxious  waiting  was  continued,  and 
with  each  telegram  that  was  sent  came  a  knell  to  the 
hopes  of  millions.  He  must  die,  they  said,  and  that 
last  Monday  was  like  the  funeral  day  of  a  race.  People 
sought  their  homes  that  night  oppressed  with  sad  fore- 
bodings, and  their  petitions  were  for  strength  to  meet 
the  impending  calamity. 

He  died  September  19th,  1881,  the  first  news  reach- 
ing the  people  in  the  cities  through  the  tolling  of  the 
bells.  When  the  strokes  commenced,  those  who  listened 
thought  it  was  the  striking  of  the  hour,  but  soon  they  real- 


ANXIOUS    WAITING.  717 

Ized  the  meaninfr  of  the  slow  tolHne,  and  as  the  church 
bells  beo^an  to  mve  out  their  dissonance  on  the  niirht 
wind,  the  hearts  of  the  listeners  sank  within  them.  "'Tis 
he,"  they  said,  and  their  eyes  overflowed  with  tears  as 
they  thought  of  the  stricken  mourner  who  would  now 
watch  no  more  at  his  bedside.  From  out  their  homes 
the  people  hurried,  and  the  streets  of  the  cities  were 
crowded  with  a  restless  throng  surging  aimlessly 
along,  seemingly  panic-stricken  and  unnerved. 

All  that  day  the  watchers  at  the  bedside  counted  the 
hours  with  feverish  dread,  for  the  ph)sicians  had  fore- 
told the  end  and  the  brave  wife  had  gathered  her 
strength  to  meet  the  inevitable.  Much  of  the  time  she 
had  watched  at  his  bedside,  and  at  intervals  when  she 
could  be  spared  had  sat  alone  at  a  window  overlooking 
the  water,  white  and  still,  making  no  complaint,  causing 
no  unnecessary  anxiety  on  her  account.  At  last,  utterly 
weary,  and  believing  that  her  husband  was  resting 
quietly,  she  retired  to  her  room,  leaving  him  without  a 
thought  of  immediate  death,  A  summons  to  come 
quickly  was  made  shortly  after  ten  o'clock,  and  when 
she  hurried  into  the  room,  seeino-  the  change  that  had 
come  over  the  beloved  face,  she  exclaimed,  "What  does 
this  mean  ?"  and  then,  realizing  the  situation,  cried,  "  Oh, 
why  am  I  made  to  suffer  this  cruel  wrong  !  "  That  was 
all  the  outburst  made  by  her  then  or  after.  The  death- 
damp  was  on  her  husband's  brow,  and  the  end  had  come. 
She  sat  upon  the  bed  beside  him,  holding  his  hand 
in  hers  and  gazing  into  the  eyes  no  longer  able  to  re- 
turn her  look. 


yiS  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

The  history  of  the  dying  scene  can  be  told  in  a  few 
words.  General  Swaim  was  watching,  when  the  Pres- 
ident, who  had  been  sleeping,  suddenly  awoke  and 
said,  *'  Oh,  Swaim  !  this  terrible  pain  ! "  indicating  its 
locality  by  placing  his  hand  on  his  breast  over  the  re- 
gion of  the  heart.  "  Oh,  Swaim  !  "  he  exclaimed  again 
later,  "this  terrible  pain!  Press  your  hand  on  it! 
Oh,  Swaim ! "  The  eyes  were  set  in  death  a  moment 
later,  and  no  other  words  were  spoken.  "  Dan,"  the 
colored  man,  came  into  the  room  at  that  moment  and 
was  hurriedly  despatched  for  Dr.  Bliss.  The  latter 
was  sittine  at  a  table  over  his  letters.  Colonel  Rock- 
well  had  just  left  the  room  and  joined  his  wife  and 
daughter  on  the  piazza.  The  moment  Dr.  Bliss  glanced 
at  the  face  of  the  President,  before  he  had  touched  his 
pulse  he  said,  "  Swaim,  he  is  dying.  Call  Drs.  Agnew 
and  Hamilton,  and  send  for  his  wife." 

When  Mrs.  Garfield  entered  the  room,  the  President 
was  quite  unconscious.  There  was  no  sound  except  the 
occasional  heavy  breathing  of  the  President,  and  an  oc- 
casional whisper  between  the  doctors.  The  light  which 
had  been  burning  behind  the  screen  was  carried  nearer 
the  bed,  and  the  group,  which  comprised  Dr.  Bliss,  who 
stood  at  the  head  of  the  bed  noting  the  pulse  of  the  pa- 
tient, Mrs.  Garfield,  who  sat  on  the  bed,  Drs.  Agnew, 
Hamilton  and  Boynton,  Col.  Rockwell  Gen.  Swaim,  and 
Dan,  waited  in  silence.  Mollle  Garfield,  who  was  by  her 
mother's  side,  put  her  arms  about  her  neck  and  asked, 
"  Is  it  death?"    The  mother  clasped  her  to  her  heart,  say- 


ALONE    WITH    HER    DEAD.  719 

Ing  convulsively,  "My  daughter."  Soon  the  President's 
breathine  ceased,  his  head  fell  back  on  the  arm  of  Dr. 
Bliss,  and  the  latter  whispered,  "It  is  all  over."  Mrs. 
Garfield  arose  and  went  from  the  room,  the  fixed  lines 
about  her  face  showinof  the  effort  she  was  makinof  to 
control  herself.  At  the  door  of  her  r'oom  she  broke 
quite  down  and  sobbed  aloud.  She  was  alone  but  a  few 
minutes  and  then  returned  to  the  bed  where  her  dead 
husband  lay.  The  eyelids  had  been  closed  and  the  seal 
of  death  was  set  upon  the  rigid  limbs.  She  sat  by  the 
bed  for  three  hours,  the  tears  raining  down  her  face  and 
her  form  shaking  violently.  The  cold  hand  she  held  re- 
turned no  answering  pressure,  and  she  stroked  the  arm 
mechanically  as  she  looked  upon  the  face  of  her  dead. 

When  it  was  necessary  for  the  last  service  that  the 
living  could  ever  pay  to  the  departed  to  be  performed, 
she  was  led  to  her  room,  where  Dr.  Bliss  from  an  adjoin- 
ing apartment  heard  her  pacing  the  floor  all  night  long. 
She  did  not  forget  the  broken-hearted  mother  in  her 
distant  home,  and  General  Swaim  was  commissioned  to. 
telegraph  her. 

When  the  aged  woman  came  from  her  room  early  in 
the  mornino;-,  she  asked  for  the  telesfram  that  was  ex- 
pected  every  day,  but  was  induced  to  have  her  break- 
fast first  and  then  read  the  news. 

"Grandma,"  said  her  granddaughter,  in  reply  to  a 
request  that  she  be  given  the  telegram  that  she  knew 
must  be  there,  "  would  you  be  surprised  to  get  bad  news 
this  morninor  ? " 


720  LUCRETIA  RUDOLPH  GARFIELD. 

"Well,  I  don't  know,"  she  answered  slowly, 

"  Grandma,"  she  said,  "  there  is  bad  news." 

"  Is  he  dead  ?  "  asked  the  old  lady  tremulously. 

"  He  is." 

The  tears  started  as  she  asked,  "  Is  It  true  ?  Then  the 
Lord  help  me,  for  if  he  is  dead  what  shall  I  do  ?  I  have 
no  further  wish  to  live,  and  I  cannot  live  if  it  is  so," 

The  tolling  of  the  bells  had  not  wakened  her  in  the 
night,  and  every  care  was  taken  to  keep  her  from  excite- 
ment; but  she  was  rendered  nervous  and  weak,  and  those 
about  greatly  feared  the  result  of  the  shock.  Several 
times  she  retired  to  her  room,  and  later  in  the  day  it 
was  evident  that  she  had  brought  herself  into  a  com- 
posed state.  Alone  In  her  grief  she  had  found  strength 
to  meet  the  blow,  and  she  read  the  telegram  which 
said,  "James  died  this  evening  at  lo.  35.  He  calmly 
breathed  his  life  away."  Then  after  a  long  silence  she 
slowly  said,  "I  can  firmly  believe  that  God  knows  best, 
and  I  must  not  murmur." 

At  Mentor  the  two  younger  sons  were  staying  with 
Mrs.  Garfield's  brother,  and  in  the  early  morning  they 
were  told  of  their  loss.  At  Williams  College  were 
Harry  and  James,  the  latter  ill  of  malaria  contracted  in 
Washlnorton.     The  eldest  son  reached  his  mother's  side 

O 

the  next  day,  leaving  his  brother  behind. 

At  Elberon  preparations  were  making  for  the  re- 
moval of  the  body  to  Washington,  and  Mrs.  Garfield  was 
surrounded  by  the  ladies  of  the  Cabinet  and  others.  Af- 
ter the  autopsy,  which  revealed  the  nature  of  the  wound 


LEAVING    ELRERON.  72 1 

and  showed  that  the  President  could  not  have  recov- 
ered, and  that  had  he  Hved  he  would  have  been  a  hope- 
less invalid,  the  brave,  suffering-  woman  grew  calmer, 
and  with  unfailing  courage  met  the  demands  made  upon 
her.  She  saw  President  Arthur,  who  called  with  General 
Grant,  and  refused  herself  to  none  whose  presence  was 
warranted  by  right  of  official  rank  or  personal  friendship. 
It  was  Mrs.  Garfield's  wish  that  there  should  be  a  re- 
liirious  service  held  at  the  cottage  before  the  start  was 
made  for  Washington.  At  half- past  nine  on  Wednesday- 
morning  the  doors  were  closed  to  the  public,  and  the 
Rev.  Charles  J.  Young,  of  Long  Branch,  stepped  to 
the  head  of  the  bier  to  begin  the  service.  The  audi- 
ence  gathered  about  him  comprised  the  highest  of- 
ficials of  the  land  and  their  wives,  together  with  all 
who  had  been  in  attendance  upon  the  President.  At 
the  moment  when  all  was  in  readiness,  Mrs.  Garfield 
leaned  towards  Colonel  Rockwell,  who  stood  near  her, 
and  spoke  in  a  whisper  to  him.  He  raised  his  hand 
to  bid  the  minister  wait,  and  said  in  alow  tone  that  Mrs. 
Garfield  wished  to  look  into  the  coffin  before  the  service. 
Immediately  she  arose  and  taking  her  daughter  by  the 
hand  went  to  the  side  of  it.  Both  stood  hand-in-hand, 
the  daughter  weeping  violendy,  the  mother  looking 
down  into  the  coffin,  showing  no  emotion  beyond  a  face 
like  marble.  She  stood  motionless  For  what  seemed 
a  very  long  time  to  the  anxious  friends  about  her. 
There  was  not  a  dry  eye  in  the  room,  and  strong  men 

wept  as  they  gazed  upon  the  touching  scene. 
46 


72  2  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

The  mournful  procession  that  moved  out  of  the  cottage 
was  led  by  Mrs.  Garfield,  who  leaned  upon  the  arm  of 
her  son  Harry.  She  was  clad  in  heavy  mourning,  her 
veil  almost  entirely  concealing  her  face  from  view.  As 
the  train  moved  slowly  away,  a  passing  glimpse  of  her 
face  was  seen  as  she  gazed  upon  the  windows  of  the 
room  where  her  husband  had  died.  Loviner  hearts  w^ere 
all  about  her,  but  she  was  thinking  of  him :  there  was 
no  panacea  for  her  pain.  Had  there  been,  the  touching 
demonstrations  of  sorrow  at  every  point  along  the 
road  to  Washington  would  have  brought  it.  The 
school-children  gathered  in  groups  at  the  various  sta- 
tions, weeping  as  they  stood  with  uncovered  heads;  the 
country  people  gathered  in  groups,  with  bared  heads  ;  the 
tolling  of  bells  and  emblems  of  mourning  everywhere 
moved  the  observers  to  tears.  At  Princeton  Junction 
the  Colleee  students  scattered  flowers  aloner  the  track. 
At  Washington,  where  the  feeling  was  intense,  and 
where  every  possible  expression  had  been  given  to  the 
grief  of  the  people,  the  funeral  train  was  received  by 
the  army  and  navy  officials  and  thousands  of  citizens. 

Mrs.  Garfield  and  her  children  became  the  guests  of 
Attorney-General  MacVeagh,  and  remained  there  dur- 
ing her  stay  in  Washington.  She  went  to  the  White 
House  the  day  preceding  her  departure  to  remove 
her  husband's  papers,  her  friends  having  packed  her 
possessions  for  her  the  preceding  day.  Upon  entering 
the  room  in  which  her  husband  so  long  lay  ill  she  grew 
deathly  pale,  but  maintained  her  self-composure,  and 


THE    LAST   LOOK.  723 

gratefully  noticed  the  flowers  with  which  some  kind  soul 
had  decorated  the  bed  in  anticipation  of  her  coming. 

The  body  of  the  President  lay  in  state  in  the  Capitol 
from  Wednesday  morning  until  the  following  Friday 
afternoon.  Mrs.  Garfield  visited  it  there  on  Thursday, 
and  viewed  the  face  for  the  last  time.  When  the 
throngs  of  people  pressing  about  the  entrances  from 
every  side  understood  the  reason  for  which  the  doors 
had  been  closed,  they  waited  in  silence  and  patiently 
until  they  were  opened  again. 

Leaning  on  General  Swaim's  arm,  and  followed  by 
her  son  and  daughter,  Mr.  MacVeagh  and  others,  Mrs. 
Garfield  entered  the  building,  the  guards  concealing 
themselves  behind  the  columns  and  draperies  or  stand- 
inof  with  their  faces  to  the  wall.  When  the  rotunda 
was  reached  she  entered  it  alone,  those  with  her  wait- 
ing outside  until  she  returned.  For  twenty  minutes 
she  remained  with  her  dead,  and  when  she  came  out 
she  carried  in  her  hand  a  flower  she  had  taken  from 
the  coffin.  On  the  casket  rested  the  magnificent  wreath 
presented  by  Queen  Victoria  through  the  British  Le- 
gation, and  about  it  on  all  sides  were  countless  de- 
signs. The  wreath  from  the  Queen  was  composed  of 
white  and  Marshal  Niel  roses,  on  a  base  of  smilax,  and 
the  inscription  was,  "  Queen  Victoria  to  the  memory  of  the 
late  President  Garfield;  an  expression  of  her  sorrow  and 
sympathy  with  Mrs.  Garfield  and  the  American  nation." 

Tributes  were  there  from  old  friends,  from  organiza- 
tions and  municipal  authorities,  and  all  were  taken  at 


724  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

Mrs.  Garfield's  request  to  Mentor  to  be  preserved 
for  her  children,  for  whom  she  desired  to  keep  them. 
Some  of  the  devices  were  of  great  beauty  and  fine  work- 
manship, but  none  seemed  to  touch  the  emotions  of 
the  people  so  deeply  as  the  offering  of  England's  Queen 
to  America's  widow. 

The  start  to  Cleveland  was  made  Friday  afternoon, 
after  the  funeral   in   the  Capitol.     President  Arthur,  the 
two  ex-Presidents  Grant  and  Hayes,  and  the  Cabinet 
of  President  Garfield,  together  with  former  members  of 
Cabinets,  General    Hancock,  who  accompanied  the  re 
mains  to  Cleveland,  as  did  General  Sherman  and  thou 
sands    of    the    residents    of  Washinofton,   followed    thi 
hearse  to  the  depot.     The  Capitol  gave  up  all  that  wa-i 
mortal  of  President  Garfield  with  manifestations  of  sor- 
row that  showed  how  deeply  he  had  been   loved  and 
honored  during  his  life  there. 

Through  every  town  and  hamlet  that  the  mourninf; 
train  passed,  the  beautiful  affection  of  the  people  was 
shown.  Mrs.  Garfield,  more  composed  than  on  the 
journey  from  Long  Branch,  looked  out  upon  the  crowds 
and  the  sable  draperies,  and  expressed  herself  as  thank- 
ful for  the  sympathy  manifested.  At  one  town,  Avhere 
the  train  stopped,  some  one  offered  to  pull  down  the  cur- 
tain, but  she  declined  the  service,  saying  she  loved  to 
look  at  the  dear  people. 

The  scenes  at  Cleveland  on  the  arrival  of  the  train, 
during  Sunday,  and  on  Monday,  the  21st,  the  day  of 
the  funeral,  can  never  be  pictured  by  pen.     The  mother 


AT    CLEVELAND.  725 

of  the  dead  President,  his  sisters  and  brother,  and  the 
relatives  and  old  ncicjhbors,  were  waitin^r  for  the  comin<y 
of  the  cortege,  and  Mrs.  Garfield  was  reunited  to  her 
three  sons,  James  having  reached  Cleveland  from  Wil- 
liams College  previous  to  her  arrival.  The  reception 
[procession  through  the  streets  to  the  pavilion  catafalque 
erected  upon  Monument  Square  was  an  imposing  one. 
Thousands  of  people  viewed  the  coffin  as  it  rested 
upon  the  structure  appropriately  draped  from  base  to 
dome  with  black  and  white  crape.  The  two  carloads 
of  flowers  that  decorated  the  interior  of  the  pavilion 
were  sent  from  Cincinnati,  and  this  temple  for  the  dead 
was  an  honor  to  the  willintr  hands  and  loving  hearts 
that  had  fashioned  it.  No  more  beautiful  structure  ever 
held  the  body  of  the  revered  dead. 

Mrs.  Garfield,  who  had  not  attended  the  funeral  at  the 
Capitol  in  Washington,  had  expressed  her  desire  to 
take  part  in  the  last  honors  paid  to  her  husband,  and 
the  committee  having  in  charge  the  arrangements  had 
assigned  to  her  use  the  interior  of  the  temple  beside 
the  coffin,  and  well  screened  by  the  flowers  from 
the  public  gaze.  She  rode  in  the  procession  to  the 
catafalque  and  was  seated  there  between  the  only 
brother  of  the  President  and  his  aged  mother.  Her 
children  were  about  her,  and  the  members  of  the  Cabi- 
net and  their  wives,  General  Swaim  and  wife,  Colonel 
Rockwell  and  wife.  Secretary  Brown,  ex-President  and 
Mrs.  Hayes  and  others.  After  all  had  been  given  seats, 
the  mother,  supported  by  a  lady  friend,  walked  up  to  the 


726  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

coffin,  and  laid  her  face  upon  the  fastened  lid.  She 
stood  there  for  a  short  time  weeping  and  praying  softly, 
while  the  people  about  stood  in  silence,  uncovered,  and 
with  sympathy  in  every  heart.  After  the  funeral  services, 
performed  by  Dr.  Errett,  Bishop  Bedell,  and  Dr.  Hough- 
ton, Dr.  Errett  preaching  the  funeral  oration  at  the  re- 
quest of  Mrs.  Garfield,  in  accordance  with  an  old  com- 
pact made  between  himself  and  General  Garfield,  the 
long  procession  moved  to  the  cemetery.  The  streets  were 
filled  with  people;  the  crossings  were  decorated  with 
mourning  emblems  of  all  descriptions;  superb  flowers, 
the  offerings  of  various  towns  and  cities,  outlining  many 
beautiful  designs.  At  the  cemetery  the  troops  formed 
in  a  half  diamond  in  front  of  the  vault,  and  into  the  space 
between  them  and  the  vault,  the  funeral  car,  drawn  by 
twelve  coal-black  horses,  was  driven.  The  ground  was 
covered  with  flowers  and  evergreens.  Mrs.  Garfield's 
carriage  was  driven  into  the  centre  of  the  court  formed 
by  the  troops,  and  in  it  were  seated  the  widow  and 
mother  of  the  President,  Harry,  James  and  little  Abe 
Garfield.  The  two  eldest  sons  alighted  and  stood  at 
either  end  of  the  vehicle.  Miss  Mollie  Garfield  and 
her  brother  Irwin  were  in  the  next  carriage,  and  Secre- 
tary Blaine's  came  next  and  took  up  a  position  near 
Mrs.  Garfield's  carriage.  A  number  of  prominent  gen- 
tlemen. Secretary  Blaine,  ex-President  Hayes,  ex-Sec- 
retary Evarts,  General  Swaim,  Colonel  Corbin,  and 
others,  and  the  officiating  clergymen,  were  grouped  about 
the  vault  door.     The  marines  bore  upon  their  shoulders 


THE    LAST   SCENE,  727 

the  coffin,  and  as  they  passed  in  front  of  the  carriage, 
a  stifled  sob  broke  from  Mrs.  Garfield.  Rev.  J.  H.  Jones 
made  an  address ;  President  Garfield's  favorite  ode,  the 
22d  ode  of  Horace,  was  sung^;  a  prayer  was  offered,  and 
(General  Swaim  and  Colonel  Rockwell  escorted  Harry 
and  James  into  the  vault  to  look  for  the  last  time  upon 
the  casket  containing  all  that  was  earthly  of  their  fatlier. 
The  door  was  closed  and  all  was  over. 

The  day  succeeding  the  funeral,  Mrs.  Garfield,  accom- 
panied by  Mother  Garfield,  her  children,  Colonel  Rock 
well,    General    Swaim    and     their    wives,    antl     Private 
Secretary  Brown,  went  to  Mentor  in   the  mourning  car 
that  conveyed  her  from  Long  Branch. 

Through  all  the  trying  scenes  of  the  drama,  now 
closed  forever,  Mrs.  Garfield  had  so  conducted  herself 
that  the  nation  was  proud  of  her  as  the  w^ife  of  its  Presi- 
dent, and  the  grief  of  the  people  was  mitigated  by  their 
admiration  of  her  bravery  and  heroism  under  circum- 
stances that  would  have  crushed  the  majority  of  women. 
And  looking  back  at  the  tragedy  from  the  day  the 
President  was  shot,  through  the  eighty-two  days  of  his 
sufferings,  through  the  death-scene,  and  even  to  the 
end,  the  country  saw  no  act,  heard  no  remark  of  Mrs. 
Garfield's  that  was  not  ennobling  and  beautiful.  On 
every  occasion,  through  every  crisis,  and  for  a  week 
after  the  death,  w^hile  she  was  constantly  passing  from 
one  painful  interview  or  scene  to  another,  she  was  the 
same  quiet,  self-controlled  woman.  Her  husband  Iiad 
said  of  her  that  he  never  knew  her  to  be  stampeded;  that 


728  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

she  could  not  be  thrown  into  a  panic,  and  right  nobly 
she  vindicated  the  truth  of  his  saying.  Her  courage 
was  indomitable,  and  her  composure  so  great  that  she 
was  an  enigma  to  many  of  her  own  sex.  Much  of  her 
self-control  was  due  to  her  unselfishness.  She  thought 
of  others  when  she  was  the  greatest  sufferer,  and  met 
the  requirements  made  upon  her  with  a  self-possession 
that  led  many  to  believe  she  would  break  down  utterly 
when  the  excitement  was  over. 

At  Lone  Branch  the  evening  after  the  President's 
death  she  sent  for  all  the  wives  of  the  me  nbsrs  of  the 
Cabinet,  and  in  her  own  room  she  thanked  them  for 
their  presence  and  active  sympathy  during  the  trying 
Aveeks  since  her  husband  was  stricken.  She  told  them 
that  their  kind  words  of  encouragement  had  helped  to 
sustain  her  own  fortitude  which  was  so  necessary  to 
the  sufferer,  and  spoke  of  conversations  with  her  hus- 
band before  the  fatal  relapse  in  August,  in  which  he 
had  expressed  himself  in  the  tenderest  terms  regard- 
inor  the  members  of  his  official  family  and  their  wives. 
He  loved  them  as  brothers  and  sisters,  and  was  sure 
they  loved  him.  Then  with  a  sweet  tenderness  of 
manner  she  assured  them  that  one  of  the  sharp  sorrows 
she  was  suffering  was  the  knowledge  that  the  ties  so 
pleasant  were  to  be  severed,  and  that  she  was  to  see 
them  about  her  no  more. 

All  the  beautiful  memories  that  people  treasure  of 
her  to-day  were  created  by  her  in  like  acts.  When  she 
got  to  Cleveland,  where  the  sight  of  so  many  familiar 


THE    QUEEN  S    SYMPATHY.  729 

faces  brought  anew  the  reaHzing  sense  of  her  loss, 
she  forgot  herself  in  thinking  of  others.  Her  first  act 
was  to  visit  Mother  Garfield,  and  comfort  her  as  only 
she  could,  and  to  offer  her  sympathy  to  the  sorrowing 
sisters  and  brother  of  her  husband.  She  visited  tlie 
cemetery  and  viewed  the  spot  selected  for  the  grave  of 
the  President,  and  made  the  people  of  Cleveland  proud 
that  the}  had  given  it  to  her,  by  her  satisfaction  with  it. 
1  he  spirit  of  peace  and  love  seemed  to  be  with  her  and 
sustain  her,  even  back  to  the  home  she  had  left  under 
such  different  circumstances.  Into  it  followed  the  affec- 
tion of  a  nation  of  people,  and  across  the  vvater  came 
tokens  of  tenderness  from  many  sources. 

The  Queen,  whose  womanly  sympathy  for  Mrs.  Gar- 
field made  her  dear  to  the  American  people,  sent  her 
at  her  home  a  message  which,  with  its  reply,  was  as 
follows.  The  message  was  sent  to  Minister  Lowell, 
who  transmitted  it  to  Secretary  Blaine. 

"  I  have  received  the  followincr  telcQ-ram  from  the 
Queen  :  '  Would  you  express  my  sincere  condolence  to 
the  late  President's  mother,  and  inquire  after  her  health, 
as  well  as  after  that  of  Mrs.  Garfield.'  Her  Majest\- 
adds:  'I  should  be  thankful  if  you  would  procure  me  a 
good  photograph  of  General  Garfield.'  " 

Acting  Secretary  Hitt  returned  the  following  reply, 
with  the  request  that  a  fitting  communication  should  be 
made  to  Her  Majesty : 

"  Your  telegram  expressing  the  compassion  of  the 
Queen   for  the  mother  of  the  late  President  was  duly 


730  LUCRETIA    RUDOLPH    GARFIELD. 

forwarded  to  Mrs.  Garfield,  at  Mentor,  Ohio.  Have 
just  received  the  following  reply:  'Please  request  Mr. 
Lowell  to  express  to  Her  Majesty,  the  Queen,  the 
grateful  acknowledgments  of  the  mother  of  General 
(jarfield,  and  my  own  for  the  tender,  womanly  sympathy 
she  has  been  pleased  to  send  ;  also  that  Her  Majesty's 
wisli  will  be  complied  with  at  an  early  day.' 

"LucRETL^  R.  Garfield." 

Mrs.  Garfield  returned  to  Cleveland  to  be  present  at 
the  arrancjements  made  for  the  final  interment,  and 
when  the  monument,  to  be  erected  in  Lakeview  Ceme- 
tery by  the  people,  is  completed,  she  will  take  part  in 
the  ceremonies  then. 

When  she  went  into  the  White  House  she  was  asked 
for  some  particulars  of  her  life  for  publication.  Her 
reply  was,  "I  have  done  nothing  that  can  be  written 
about.  Wait  until  I  have,  and  then  it  will  be  time 
enoucrh  to  write."  The  time  came  sooner  than  she  anti- 
cipated,  and  in  a  way  that  not  the  wildest  Imagination 
would  have  fancied,  seeing  her  in  the  fulness  of  life,  at 
the  top  round  of  worldly  honors,  and  happy  in  all  rela- 
tions. It  came,  and  from  the  fiery  furnace  of  suffering, 
disappointed  hopes  and  loss,  she  emerged  to  shed 
briofht  lustre  on  her  sex,  and  to  elevate  the  world's 
judgment  of  women  in  all  the  relations  of  life.  She 
was  given  the  opportunity  to  "  do  something,"  and  so 
well  was  her  duty  performed,  that  the  world  will  never 
cease  to  do  homage  to  the  character  and  virtues  of  the 
widow  of  the  Twentieth  President  of  the  Republic, 
Lucretia  Garfield. 


XXVII. 

••THE  WHITE  HOUSE." 

The  corner-stone  of  the  Presidents'  House  was 
laid  on  the  13th  of  October,  1792,  and  the  building 
was  constructed  after  the  desio-ns  and  under  the  direc- 
tions  of  Captain  James  Hobon,  Architect.  After  its 
destruction  by  the  British,  in  1814,  the  interior  was 
rebuilt  by  Captain  Hobon.  It  is  located  at  the  inter- 
section of  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  Connecticut,  and 
Vermont  Avenues,  which  radiate  from  this  point  as 
centre. 

The  house  is  constructed  of  Virginia  free-stone, 
which  is  excessively  porous,  and  consequently  would 
cause  great  dampness  in  the  interior,  were  it  not  for  a 
thick  coat  of  white  lead,  which  is  applied  about  once 
in  ten  years  at  an  enormous  expense.  The  rock  used 
in  the  construction  of  the  foundation  was  quarried  by 
Captain  Samuel  Smallvvood  (afterward  mayor  of 
Washington),  on  the  banks  of  Rock  creek,  from  the 
lower  or  K-street  bridge,  as  far  as  Lyonshouse  wharf. 
The  grounds  were  formerly  enclosed  with  a  high  stone 
wall.  The  old  sycamore  trees  which  stand  in  the  side- 
walk on  Pennsylvania  Avenue,  in  front  of  the  mansion, 
occupy  a  line  running  parallel  with  the  former  site  of 
L.at  wall.     The  portico  on  the  north  front  was  added 

(730 


732  THE    WHITE    HOUSE. 

to  the  building  during  the  administration  of  President 
Jackson. 

The  latitude  to  the  nearest  second,  38°  53'  12",  north. 
Longitude    of   the    Presidents'   House    from    the    Paris 

o 

observatory,  79°  1 7'  1 6",  west. 

In  1 793,  about  eighty  paces  west  of  the  brick  arch 
on  Pennsylvania  Avenue,  a  log  was  thrown  over  the 
Tiber,  which  served  as  a  bridge  over  which  the  pro- 
cession passed,  headed  by  General  George  Washington. 
Here  the  boys  caught  herring  and  other  fish.  The 
waters  of  the  Tiber  occasionally  extended  in  places  over 
the  present  Pennsylvania  Avenue,  the  road  to  the 
Presidents'  House  being  considerably  north  of  it,  and 
along  which  a  traveller  in  that  day  might  pass  from  the 
Capitol  square  to  the  former  without  seeing  a  human 
being.  The  house  of  David  Burns,  which  stood  in  the 
grounds  south  of  the  Presidents'  House,  is  now  owned 
by  his  descendants,  and  is  an  object  of  interest  to  all 
who  remember  Washington's  notion  of  him  as  the 
"obstinate"  Mr.  Burns. 

In  1796,  as  President  Washington  passed  the  Presi- 
dents' House  (then  building),  a  salute  of  sixteen  guns 
was  fired  by  the  artillery  company  stationed  at  that 
point. 

The  Presidents'  House  is  situated  In  the  western  part 
of  the  city,  on  a  plot  of  ground  of  twenty  acres  ;  forty- 
four  feet  above  high-water  mark.  It  has  a  southern  and 
a  nordiern  front ;  the  southern  sloping  towards  the 
Potomac  and  commandinor  a  view  of  it.     A  semi-circu- 


THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  733 

lar  balcony  extends  out  from  the  Parlors  on  this  side 
and  overlooks  the  private  garden  near  by,  and  the 
public  grounds  beyond.  The  high  basement  gives 
the  house  a  third  story  on  this  side.  On  both  fronts 
the  grounds  are  laid  out  with  taste  and  planted  witl\ 
forest-trees  and  shrubbery.  The  walks  are  of  gravel, 
broad  and  delio-htful. 

The  mansion  is  two  stories  and  very  lofty,  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy  feet  front,  and  eighty-six  feet  deep. 
The  northern  front  is  ornamented  with  a  lofty  portico 
of  four  Ionic  columns  in  front  and  three  on  either  side. 
Beneath  this  portico  drive  the  carriages  of  visitors ; 
immediately  opposite  the  front  door,  across  the  open 
vestibule  or  hall,  is  the  Reception  Room.  The  East 
Room  is  eighty  feet  long,  forty  feet  wide,  and  twenty- 
two  hiorh.  There  are  four  mantels  of  marble  with 
Italian  black,  and  gold  fronts,  and  very  handsome  grates  ; 
each  mantel  is  surmounted  with  a  French  mirror,  the 
plates  of  which  measures  one  hundred  and  fifty-eight 
inches,  framed  in  splendid  style.  Four  other  large 
mirrors,  two  at  each  end  of  the  room,  reflect  the  rays 
from  three  large  chandeliers,  from  which  depend  glass 
pendants,  which  glitter  in  the  light  like  diamonds ;  each 
chandelier  has  twenty-seven  burners. 

In  front  of  the  Presidents'  House,  in  a  small  en- 
closure, is  the  bronze  statue  of  Jefferson,  presented  to 
the  government  by  Captain  Levy,  of  the  United  States 
army,  who  was,  at  that  time  (1840)  owner  of  Monti- 
cello.      The    statue    stands  on  a  pedestal :    in   his  left 


734  THE    WHITE    HOUSE. 

hand  Jefferson  holds  a  scroll  of  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence, and  in  his  right  hand  a  pen,  as  though 
he  had  just  finished  that  immortal  instrument,  and  was 
anticipating  the  glorious  results  of  its  influence ;  the 
terror  it  would  strike  among  the  foes  of  freedom  ;  the 
strength  with  which  it  would  nerve  the  patriot's  heart ; 
the  bitter  opposition  which  it  would  meet  with  from 
some  ;  the  joy  with  which  it  would  be  hailed  by  more ; 
and,  if  adopted,  the  high  destinies  which  awaited  Young 
America. 

It  now  occupies  an  eligible  position,  and  will  long 
stand  in  honor  alike  of  the  great  man  it  so  faithfully 
represents,  and  of  the  noble  spirit  of  patriotism  that 
secured  and  presented  it  to  the  nation.  It  formerly 
stood  in  the  Rotunda  of  the  Capitol. 

The  Presidents'  House,  during  Mr,  Jefferson's  ad- 
ministration, stood  unenclosed,  on  a  piece  of  waste  and 
barren  ground,  separated  from  the  Capitol  by  an  almost 
impassable  marsh.  That  building  was  not  half  com- 
pleted, and  standing  as  it  did  amidst  the  rough  masses 
of  stone  and  other  materials  collected  for  its  construcdon, 
and  half-hidden  by  the  venerable  oaks  that  still  shaded 
their  native  soil,  looked  more  like  a  ruin  in  the  midst  of 
its  fallen  fragments  and  coeval  shades,  than  a  new  and 
risinof  edifice.  The  silence  and  solitude  of  the  surround- 
ing  space  were  calculated  to  enforce  this  idea,  for  be- 
yond the  Capitol  hill  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  the 
city,  as  it  was  called,  lay  in  a  state  of  nature,  covered 
with    thick    groves    and    forest-trees,    wide    and     level 


THE    WHITE    HOUSE.  735 

plains  with  only  here  and  there  a  house  along  the  in- 
tersecting ways,  that  could  not  yet  be  properly  called 
streets, 

Thomas  Moore  visited  the  United  States  in  1804,  and 
writes  in  his  letters  to  his  mother,  that  "  the  Presidents' 
House  is  encircled  by  a  very  rude  pale,  through  which  a 
common  rustic  stile  introduced  visitors." 

The  Executive  Mansion  was  opened  for  the  reception 
of  visitors  on  the  ist  of  January,  18 18,  being  the  first 
time  since  the  completion  of  repairs  subsequent  to  its 
destruction  by  the  British. 

Gas  w'as  introduced  into  the  White  House  durlnor 
President  Polk's  administration,  the  29th  of  December, 
1848. 

Until  President  Fillmore's  time  there  was  no  library, 
llie  circular  room  in  the  second  story  contains  now  a 
fine  collection  of  books,  many  of  them  purchased  dur- 
ing President  Buchanan's  administration.  The  trees  on 
the  western  side  of  the  mansion  were  planted  by  Presi- 
dent John  Ouincy  Adams.  At  various  times  there  have 
been  complaints  made  of  the  ''palace''  in  which  the 
Presidents  were  entertained  during  their  terms,  and  not 
a  few  have  been  the  bitter  denunciations,  written  and 
spoken,  "of  its  inappropriateness,"  averring  that  it  is  too 
fine  and  too  large  for  a  republican  Chief  Magistrate. 
However,  as  the  country  has  increased  in  population  and 
wealth,  these  objections  ceased  to  be  made,  and  since 
the  most  interested  persons  say  nothing  now  of  its  being 
too  large  or  elegant,  it  is  to  be  supposed  that  it  will  con- 


736  THE    WHITE    HOUSE. 

tinue  to  be  the  Executive  Mansion  as  long  as  the  coun- 
try remains  under  its  present  form  of  government. 
Congress  has  heretofore  made  an  appropriation  after 
the  election  of  each  new  President;-'  for  repairing  and 
refurnishing  the  mansion.  After  the  close  of  the  late 
civil  war,  it  was  in  a  sad  condition,  having  been  sub- 
jected to  hard  usage.  It  was  renovated,  and  the  first 
floor  beautifully  papered  and  refurnished  under  the 
auspices  of  Mrs.  Patterson,  the  daughter  of  President 
Johnson. 

The  green-house  was  partly  burned  in  the  winter  of 
1868,  but  is  now  greatly  enlarged,  and  adds  much  to 
the  beauty  of  the  fine  old  mansion. 

From  the  library-window  on  the  second  floor  the  view 
of  the  Potomac  is  very  extended  and  magnificent.  On 
a  clear  day,  the  distant  points  of  Fort  Washington  may 
be  dimly  defined,  and  the  old  city  of  Georgetown  dis- 
tinctly seen. 

The  White  House  was  so  called  in  honor  of  the  Vir- 
oinia  home  of  Mrs.  Washington,  in  which  her  wedding 
occurred.  Washington  liad  pleasant  memories  of  that 
residence,  and  suo-crested  the  buildinir  of  a  white  house 
for  the  Presidents.  It  cost  originally  three  hundred 
thousand  dollars,  and  was  smaller  at  the  time  it  was 
burned  by  the  British  than  now.  Its  rebuilding,  refur- 
nishings  from  time  to  time,  and  the  additions  and  altera- 
tions, have  cost  a  trifle  over  one  million  seven  hundred 
thousand  dollars. 

*  There  was  none  made  during  President  Tyler's  administration. 


\ 


'5iVC' 


>  '. 


V 


.  'X  •  .  -     -^fci 


> 


'\  .. 


'.^ 


mm  HoMi 


OF  THE 


*:i^lj:'rrxx-x-rxyx:jL 


